Our Perfect Disease
by lilyevans46
Summary: This is a more accurate idea of James and Lily's seventh year at Hogwarts - how he finally got the green eyed, red haired girl of his dreams.
1. Head Girl

Lily Evans ran a hand through her hair, watching Petunia scrub the iron pans inside the deep kitchen sink. Sunlight filled the kicthen, breaking through the tea-green curtains and highlighting the perspiration on her brow.

"Are you sure-"

"_No_!" She practically hissed "I'm capable of washing up in a normal manner. Thank you."

Lily shrugged and leant backwards, putting down her quill with a sigh "I don't see why you have to be so stubborn about-"

"I'm not being stubborn," She snapped "I'm being normal."

"Normal would be letting me do that for you."

"There is nothing normal about the way you would clean this pan." Petunia contradicted, her hair, so unlike her sister's, becoming slightly frizzier in the humidity of the summer evening.

"There is nothing nomal about the fact you won't let me help you." Lily answered sharply, but stood up from the round kitchen table and left the room, walking up to her bedroom and wishing she could control her temper.

With a deep sigh, she pulled up her flaming hair into a ponytail and collapsed onto the fluffy feather pillows of her bed.

After a few moments of inward raging at her sister's lack of effort with her, there was a light tap on her door.

"What?"

Mrs Evans entered, her head tilted to one side. In the bright evening sunlight, Lily could make out the feint wrinkles on her mother's forehead, and the way her emerald eyes looked exhausted, as if she'd finally surrendered in a battle she'd been fighting for years "Lily..."

"Don't tell me to try. I _always_ try. I've been _trying_ for seven years."

"She's just-"

"Jealous, yeah...so you've said." And then she sighed "I'm sorry."

"No you're right." Mary Evans pulled her auburn hair over her left shoulder and sighed "I'll have a word."

"There's no point." Lily shook her head "She's going to Vermin's tomorrow night...then I won't have to see her until Christmas."

"Vernon, Lily." Her mother corrected, biting back the traces of a smile.

Lily smirked and both female's jumped slightly at the sound of three sharp taps on the glass behind them. Lily leant backwards and flicked the brass hook with her index finger, allowing the window the swing open and the chocolate brown owl to hop inside.

"Hogwarts?"

Lily glanced at the emblem embedded into the scarlet wax seal and nodded "Yeah..."

The parchment rolled open to reveal the usual list of equipment needed with her ticket for the Hogwarts Express and her new prefect badge, which dropped onto her lap. She had started to roll it back up when her Mother stopped her.

"What's this?"

"What?"

She reached for the parchment turned it over, revealing a letter written on the other side.

Shrugging, Lily took it back and began to read.

_To Miss Lily Evans,_

_After due considersation we have listed you as our Head Girl. Please find enclosed in this letter your new badge. You will need to meet with your co-worker for the year, the Head Boy in the Prefect Compartment on the Hogwart's Express at eleven o'clock sharp to lead the begining of year meeting. We have full confidence that you will excel and put any issues you may have behind you to work well in your final school year. _

_Congratulations and good luck,_

_Proffessor Minerva McGonagall._

"Merlin's pants." Lily breathed "I'm Head Girl!"

Her Mother squealed, and Lily inhaled the scent of a familiar perfume as she enveloped her in a huge hug, kissing her forehead "Oh, my baby!"

Chuckling slightly, Lily pulled away as her Mother left the room with promises of her favourite pudding.

The room was suddenly very quiet as she picked up the scarlet badge, realising that it didn't read 'Prefect' as she had thought, but instead 'Head Girl'.

She read over the letter a few more times, thinking the wording very strange. What issues could she possibly have with being half of the Head Student team?

x

Basically, I'm doing a better version of my first Fanfiction which I wrote when I was thirteen. It'll be more accurate and less gushy...Please review :)


	2. Head Boy

In Lily's opinion, to use the word 'busy' when describing Platform nine and three quarters was, and always would be, a gross understatement. Teaming, packed and bursting - yes. But busy...definitely not.

With it only being twenty to eleven, there were fewer people around. Those students who had made decent timing of the morning - mainly nervous first years - were spending every last minute with their families and so it was easy for Lily to levitate her trunk into the Prefect compartment at the end of the train without knocking anybody out unnecesarily. She felt that this would not be a good start to her role as Head Girl.

She glanced outside at the Platform that was quickly filling up. Having said goodbye to her parents at ten o'clock that morning and apparating to the station, there was nothing left to do but ponder over who she would be sharing her duties with - Frank or Remus?

She supposed that either would be good - Frank Longbottom was an excellent pupil, he worked incredibly hard in all subjects and had a real knack for transfiguration. He was an excellent friend and a lovely person, who could be really rather witty at times.

On the other hand there was Remus Lupin- Lily felt that the fact he was a werewolf could be a slight draw back...he'd only be up to doing duties three weeks of the month. Also, there was the issue of his friends: chubby, snivelling Pettigrew; egotisitic, 'girls are only useful for sex and making sandwhiches' Black and the arrogant, conceited bane of her existence at Hogwarts that called itself 'James Potter'.

Remus, however, was a very close friend of Lily's and despite his choice of company she found him amusing and intelligent.

A loud noise broke her trail of thought and she jumped up, looking through the window. There was a lot of purple smoke issuing fro a spot in the middle of a large crowd. Realising she was probably supposed to do something about this sort of thing now, she stood up and followed the train down to a door before stepping off onto the now heaving platform.

She pushed through the crowds impatiently "Excuse me...Head Girl..." she repeated at lest twelve times, until she reached the centre of commotion - Peter Pettigrew covered in an unfortunate amount of luminous purple slime. Beside him, Sirius Black was doubled over, howling with uncontrolable laughter.

"What is _that_?" She asked, already feeling impatience tugging at her gut.

"_That_, Evans...is what most poeple call a good old practical joke." A smooth voice answered, causing goosebumps to erupt all down her body. It irritated her somewhat that she could hear _his_ voice over the hustle and bustle of the noisy Platform even though he was standing a good two metres away.

As if by reflex, she stepped away from the voice far too quickly and tripped, only to be caught in a pair of strong arms.

"Careful." James Potter bit back a smile as she slapped his hands away "Head Girl, eh? Can't say i'm surprised really, Evans."

"How nice of you." She said sarcastically, before turning to Sirius "This had better stop now, Black."

"Really?" He caught James' eye, looking far more amused than he should "What are you going to do? Put me in detention?"

"You know...I could." she smiled slightly "It's well within my rights."

"I''d love to see you try." He smirked "You look good, by the way. Whatever lucky boy get's to work with you this year has a nice view."

Peter burst out laughing and Sirius snorted. James smirked, pushing the pair away into the slowly dispersing crowd. Mentally cursing them all, Lily stomped back onto the train.

When she arrived back in the Prefect's compartment, there were a few teenagers there that she vaguely recognised but only one she truly knew.

"Frank!" She said, reaching the dark haired boy and hugging him.

He smiled, squeezing her back gently "Hey, Lil. Head Girl?"

She nodded, searching his jumper for a badge but finding nothing but 'Prefect' there "Yeah...aren't you?"

"Head Girl? No actually..."

She laughed "I mean Head Boy."

"Unfortunately not...but I'm not too bothered."

"Oh yeah?" She said, surprised.

"I have my hopes set higher." He said vaguely, looking behind her through the glass of the compartmet door.

Lily followed his gaze and watched the door slide open, revealing one of her best friends. She smiled slightly "Oh...I see."

He smirked as Alice Fortescue appeared, her blonde shoulder length curls glowing in the morning sunshine.

"Lily!" She squealed, throwing both arms around the girl in question with a force you wouldn't necessarily expect from somebody so small.

"Hey Alice." Lily laughed "Good summer?"

She shrugged "Not bad...you know..."

Lily nodded because yes, she did know. It was all over the Prophet - Death Eaters swarming around in packs, killing off muggles for the fun of it and brandishing their evil marks across the sky. Alice's parents both worked for the Ministry so Lily could only imagine the level of stress in her household over the past two months. The level of revision they had been expected to throughout the summer was hardly the cherry on top of the cake, either.

"How was yours?"

"My darling sister has a new boy friend."

Alice's eyes widened "Really? And what's he like then?"

Lily grimaced, shaking her head "Don't even go there. Oh - I'm head girl by the way!"

Alice grinned "Knew you'd get it...what about you?" She turned to Frank "Head Boy?"

He feigned being stabbed in the heart "Nope...I'm still stuck with being a measley prefect."

"Oh well...we can be measley prefects together while our friends go on to greater things." Her blue eyes danced and Frank looked like he'd just won the lottery.

Lily smirked "Well...looks like it'll be Remus, then."

"Not likely." An amused voice spoke from behind her, and Lily span around.

"What do you mean?"

Remus Lupin had a strange expression on his face - half guilty, half amused. He chewed his lip, his sandy brown hair sticking up and the bags under his eyes more pronounced than normal.

"Remus?"

He smiled "I'm not Head Boy."

Lily frowned "Well if you're not and Frank isn't then who-"

"Surprise!" Another voice interrupted, another voice that she'd already heard far too much of that particular morning.

"Potter get out." She snapped "I'm busy."

He raised an eyebrow "With what? Perhaps I could help."

She rolled her eyes, facing him "Doubtful. I'm trying to figure out who the Head Boy is and, not being a Prefect, you aren't even entitled to be in this compartment."

He smirked in that annoying manner that she despised, crossing his arms and leaning against the wall "Actually...you're wrong on both accounts."

"How so?"

"Well...number one, I do know who the Head Boy is, actually. And as for your second point, I _am_ entitled to be in this compartment because the perosn you're looking for...is me."

If looks could kill then James Potter would have been in a heap on the floor, for Lily looked at him in a manner that suggested he was some kind of worthless slug carrying a disease.

"And why the hell would I be looking for you? I'm not in the mood for this, Potter."

He smiled "You're not very observant...are you, Evans?"

She frowned "What are you talking about?"

He sighed and walked towards her, gesturing to his chest, where a small scarlet badge was pinned onto his jumper, emblazened with the golden words 'Head Boy'.

Lily felt all the blood run from her face and then rush back up twice as quickly "You _are_ joking aren't you? Please tell me that's Remus' and you're playing some kind of twisted joke!"

She stared frantically from Remus to the badge,but Remus only shook his head and the badge only continued to flash in the sunlight that was now filling the large compartment. Suddenly, everything from her oddly worded letter to the look on Sirius' face to the guilt on Remus' made sense as realisation hit home like a punch in the face.

James Potter was Head Boy.

_James Potter _was_ Head Boy._


	3. The Agreement

"Give me a minute." Lily exhaled heavily "I need a minute."

She walked out of the compartment and slammed the door, watching with a dull feeling in her stomach as the train sped by vast fields of green and yellow. With a jolt, Lily realised that they must be about twenty miles away from King's Cross and she hadn't even realised they had started moving; her final year and she hadn't been able to watch the Platform disappear on the first of September for one last time. Great. Another thing to blame James Potter for.

Fuming, she took a deep breath to steady herself as the compartment door slid open and Alice came to stand next to her.

"_Why_?" Lily moaned "Just _why_? He was never even a fucking Prefect."

"You're shaking." Alice replied simply, and Lily realised that she was right.

"I'm..." But unfortunately she was having difficulty putting gutted, desperate, hysterical and incensed into one word.

"I know. Breathe."

She did as she was told and slowly sipped down a glass of water that Alice summoned out of thin air.

After five minutes, the shaking had ceased and she was feeling determined, rather than drowned in rage.

"Better?"

"Yes." she said, after a moment "Yeah...I am."

And with that she opened the carriage door and walked into her own living version of hell.

James Potter was already on his feet at the front, all Prefects sat down facing him. Alice took the empty space next to Remus as Lily went to stand by the person she despised most in the entire world.

"Alright?" He asked, seeming genuinely concerned.

"Don't be stupid Potter...there is _nothing _about this situation that could be anywhere near '_alright_'."

He chuckled "Perhaps not for you, no. Should we get started then?"

What did he mean by that? What a stupid thing to say. _Why _in the name of Godric Gryffindor had Dumbledore appointed this _idiot_ as Head Boy?

Through gritted teeth, Lily forced a smile "Yes."

"So...those of you who were Prefects last year know all about this - basically, on the train this is your compartment and you're welcome to use it as you like. The same goes for the bathrooms in the school...I think. Honestly, I'm not really sure - I wasn't picked as a Prefect so this is all new for me."

A few people laughed and Frank smiled "Don't worry - you're not all imagining this. Dumbledore obviously had some kind of stroke when appointing the Head Student team this year. Not only did he pick the two poeple who can't spend more than five minutes in each other's company without wanting to kill one another -"

James smirked "Oh I'm sure I could spend a lot more than five minutes with her...if you know what I mean. Obviously, she'd have to be under some kind of charm to prevent the incessant talking, though."

"You know, I may be the only girl on this train who wouldn't want to spend five minutes with you." Lily replied.

"Believe me, Evans...you would if you saw me without my t-shirt on."

"I'm sure I could resist." She replied "Egotistic arses aren't usually my type."

"See what I mean about the charm?" James asked the group but Remus cut him off before he could insult her any further.

"As Frank was saying...not only did they pick two people who behave like this-" He gestured between the pair, who were staring daggers at one another "He also picked a Head Boy who was never actually a Prefect. So...you can all assume that this year is going to be very eventful."

The group of Prefects chuckled and Lily said stiffly "You need to patrol the train every now and then and there will be a schedule on your House noticeboard alerting you of any meetings and your duty rotas."

As her eyes had never left James', Alice stood and said cheerfully "You can leave now!"

As the compartment emptied, James said quietly "I'm not trying to make your life difficult, Evans. Believe me."

"Well seen as you're the last person on earth that I would trust...I'm sure you can understand why that's hard to do."

The compartment was completely empty now, and Lily looked at the boy before her carefully. He had definitely put on a few more pounds of muscle, and grown at least two inches. He must have been at least six-one, miles above her slender five-seven. His skin was tanned from whizzing around on a broomstick all summer and his jet black hair, that he messed up absently, was as messy as ever. His hand dropped down to the back of his kneck, which he rubbed for a moment and then sighed.

"How about we come to some sort of agreement?"

She eyed him suspiciously, arms crossed tightly over her chest.

"I won't annoy you on purpose...If you promise to give me a chance and stop being such a prude."

"I am not a-"

"Evans..."

She took deep, calming breath and imagined punching him hard in the face which helped "How wil you stop annoying me?"

He tilted his head to one side "Well I won't ask you out...how's that?"

She raised an eyebrow "What else?"

He looked around the compartment, as if searching for inspiration. After about thirty seconds, he looked straight into her emerald eyes "I won't pull any pranks on you or people that you care about and I won't let the other three either."

Lily knew instantly that he wasn't referring to her friends, but instead a particular Slytherin boy to whom she hadn't spoken in over six months.

It was this that made her say "Thank you, Potter."

He smiled crookedly for a moment, the left corner of his mouth pulled up "Do we have ourselves a deal?"

"Deal." She said, and shook his outstretched hand quickly before going to leave the compartment.

"Hang on a minute..." He said, picking up his coat.

"Potter, I am tolerating you. We are not friends and I am not going to walk around with you."

"No." He smirked "But where do you think Marlene's going to be?"

She sighed - he was right. Lily's other best friend, the only one of their trio who hadn't been made a Prefect in fifth year, would surely be with Sirius Black and the others waiting, like she always did, for them to finish up.

"I could walk a metre behind...if that would make you feel better?" He smirked and she rolled her eyes.

"What a great image that would give of the Head Students...cant even walk along a train together never mind patrol the school."

"My thoughts exactly." He smiled, openeing the door and letting her through. Ducking underneath his outstretched arm, she caught a whiff of fire and something else she recognised but couldn't quite put her finger on.

"You smell like burning wood." She commented.

He chuckled "There are worse compliments...I suppose."

"Why?"

He shrugged "I ride my broomstick a lot and I'm pretty fast."

"I don't think that's it...somehow."

He laughed "Oh, well in that case it could just be the smell of my house."

"Oh." she said, feeling rather uneasy. They'd been talking for almost four and a half minutes without any insults or threats - it was starting to look like a record.

"You okay?" He asked, glancing at her sideways.

"Yup." She nodded, and then added "Are you?"

He smirked "Oh, I'm great."

"Ok." she said, shooting a very dirty look towards a group of third years nudging each other, giggling at James' presence.

"Jealous?" He asked, as they passed.

She was about to turn on him and start shouting but he winked, catching her completely off guard.

"Don't wink at me."

He smiled "Yes, boss."

"I'm being serious, Potter. Do not wink at me."

"Okay...no winking alowed." He laughed "See, this whole tolerating me thing isn't so bad - is it?"

Lily raised an eyebrow as she slid open the compartment holding their friends and said nothing.

James followed her in, a glint in his hazel eyes.

"Well well well...if it isn't little miss Evans again. Nice surprise, was it - finding out who the Boy to your Head is?"

"I can think of a few other words to describe it, honestly Sirius." Lily said patiently, before turning to the girl leaning against the window "Hey Marlene."

Marlene McKinnon was the object of a fair few boys' fantasies at Hogwarts. She had almond shaped eyes in a shade of deep, dark brown that matched her long flowing hair exactly. Her eyes were framed with thick black lashes and her skin was a flawless creamy colour that ensured she would never had to wear any make-up. Her long, quidditch toned legs never seemed to end and her figure was something that many girls would kill for. She was gorgeous - and the only female in the world who could keep Sirius Black on his toes.

Marlene winked "Hey Lils...congratulations. Big surprise."

Lily smiled, taking the seat opposite her "The choice of Head Boy was, though."

She grinned, revealing a set of pearly white, perfectly straight teeth "Yeah...how did that happen? Are they even allowed to pick someone who isn't a Prefect?"

James shrugged "Must be...I couldn't believe it though. My Mum and Dad kept saying how proud they were and Sirius kept saying it must be a mistake. It can't have been though, because the letter was written directly to me."

"What do you mean?"

He reached around in his jacket pocket and pulled out a roll of parchment "_Dear Mr Potter" _He read outloud _"After ue consideration we are pleased to inform you that you have been selected as our new Head Boy. We hope that you can use your influencies and abilities to help those around you and work co-operatively and undertsandingly with our Head Girl. Congratulations, Proffessor Minerva McGonagall."_

Everybody in the compartment smiled and James tucked the letter back inside his jacket "Who else could that be written to?"

"No one...you really are Head Boy." Lily said softly "Merlin's pants."

James chuckled "Was that your last shred of hope out of the window? Looks like fate has brought us together." He winked.

"There's always hope, Potter." she said, before standing up and walking to the compartment door "I'm going to go and find the trolley."she stepped out into the corridor before poking her head back through "And, for the record, I don't believe in fate."

And then she closed the door and walked out, leaving everybody to continue their conversations. Everybody, that is, but James Potter who, with a slight smile on his face, realised he'd never understand Lily Evans, no matter how long he'd be working with her.


	4. A Walk To The Library

"Hang on," Marlene held out her arm, stopping Lily as she went to climb into the carriage behind Alice. "Do the Head Boy and Girl not have to ride together?"

From behind them, Sirius Black sniggered and James grinned "That doesn't sound half bad."

Lily gave her best friend a filthy look "You know, McKinnon...sometimes I would love to hex you into oblivion."

Her eyes widened in innocence "What? I thought it was a genuine rule."

Lily rolled her eyes and continued to climb inside as Marlene cackled with amusement.

"You aren't funny."

"Yes I am."

"You're not helping."

"Actually, I am."

Lily raised an eyebrow "How?"

"Well, by making a few lighthearted jokes I make the experience more enjoyable for those of us who have to put up with the two of you all year."

Lily ignored her and looked out of the window, as rain hit the glass and Hogsmeade turned into a passing blur. She wondered whether she was really that bad - did her hatred of James Potter really upset other people? Probably not, she decided. And even if it did, Marlene would be the last person it'd bother. Infact, Lily often wondered if the girl had a heart of stone.

Far too soon, they were out of the carriage and walking through the horizontal downpour into the castle.

"Ooh, our new Head Girl,

Our new Head Boy,

How will he get her?

Oh what's his ploy?" Peeves sang noisily as they walked into the enterance hall.

"Piss off." Said James, as Sirius laughed, shaking his head and sending water droplets all over a group of second years.

"Black - stop it!" Lily shouted through the crowd.

"Or what?"

She moved swiftly, pulling out her wand and pressing it against his throat "Or I will make you regret it."

"As Head Boy I'm going to have to stop you there, Evans." James smiled, pulling her away by her forearm.

"Get off me."

James smirked "You don't want your badge taken away before we've even started...do you?"

"If it means I don't have to work with you then it's debatable." She snapped, turning around and walking straight into McGonagall.

"Good evening, Miss Evans." She said "If yourself and Mr Potter would follow me, please."

Lily nodded and began to walk. James caught up easily in about three strides and she shot him a dirty look. His tanned skin was covered in large water droplets and the rain was making his jet-black hair seem even more unruly than usual. He messed it up absently and Lily had to admit to herself that, despite everything, James Potter was looking really quite attractive that evening.

He caught her looking and winked, so she gave him another disgusted look and turned her head.

They reached McGonagall's office and stepped inside. It was cool and the corners were in complete darness. The only source of light were two oil lamps on her desk, where Dumbledore sat, smiling.

"Hello James, Hello Lily."

"Hi, Proffessor." Lily smiled.

"Hey, Sir." James grinned, taking a seat opposite him.

Dumbledore smiled and surveyed them both over his half-moon spectacles. "First of all, I believe congratulations are in order."

"Thank you."

"Thanks."

"Yes, it was a very difficult decision to make this year - with so many gifted young Witches and Wizards...but we believe we came to the right conclusion. We hope that the two of you will put your differences aside to work together and make this school stronger than ever before. We have complete faith in the pair of you, and we know you are capable of showing leadership in these troubled times. After all - the pair of you possibly have more influence over the students who walk these halls than myself."

Lily smiled doubting this to be true but not saying anything. Dumbledore was the wisest man she'd ever met and she trusted him to know what he was talking about.

"You are both incredibly bright young people and so I trust that you can make very good decisions, despite what you may think of each other. Any questions?"

"Yes," Lily said "Do we need to do duties together?"

Dumbledore smiled and turned to McGonagall.

She looked somewhere between exasperatedd and amused "The Head Boy and Girl need to patrol the corridors three times a week - so that could be three evenings, three lunchtimes, three mornings or one of each. Whatever you think you can cope with." A small smile crept onto her face "You also need to devise a Prefect rota and lead the meetings once a fortnight."

Lily nodded "Okay."

"Anything else?"

"Why me?" James asked quietly "I mean...I get Lily - she's a Prefect, she's clever, she's only had about two detentions-"

"Both of which you were responisble for." she interrupted.

"She's approachable, she's bossy, she's-"

"I am not bossy!"

James continued, ignoring her "People listen to her. But me? I have a worse record than Sirius and I'm not even a Prefect!"

Dumbledore stood up and tilted his head slightly "I think the answer to your question, is not one that can be told but one that must be discovered. And with that final word, we have a feast waiting. Good luck - it's going to be a great year!"

And with that, he and McGonagall left the room.

Lily looked from the closing door to the boy beside her with a determined look on her face.

"What is it, Evans?" James asked, observing her.

She shook her head "Nothing."

"Tell me."

She shrugged "Its just that I'm really going to have to do this."

"Do what?"

"Be in charge, work with you, pass my NEWTs...everything. There's nothing I can do but get on with it...so that's what I'm going to."

"Get on with it?" He smiled.

"Yeah." she let out a deep breath "Come on...let's go."

x

"Oh for Merlin's sake - how am I supposed to do this?" Lily said, her head in her hands as she paced the Common Room.

"Look, Lil...it really can't be that bad." Marlene said, her legs crossed as she sat on the scarlet armchair.

It was the first evening back and Lily and James had agreed to do the first night of patrols together.

"It's James Potter, Marlene." Lily stared "It's not bad, it's _terrible_."

"I thought you'd come to some kind of agreement?" Alice asked, scribling notes onto the transfiguration paper infront of her.

Lily scoffed "Oh yeah, because James Potter has always been so reliable in the past."

Marlene smiled "If worse comes to worse, then you can always put a silencing charm on him and just absorb his general hotness."

Lily was about to contradict her but then stopped herself - after all, hadn't she been thinking the same thing less than twenty four hours ago?

"What was that?" Marlene asked quickly, sitting up straight.

"What was what?" Alice asked, lifting her head.

"Lily. She opened her mouth to tell me that James Potter wasn't hot and stopped herself."

Lily opened her mouth once again but Marlene cut her off.

"What's going on?"

"Nothing is-"

"You want him."

She flsuhed bright red "I do _not_ want him."

"Whatever." She shrugged "You will."

"I will not-"

"Who does she want?" A male voice came from the boy's staircase and Lily rolled her eyes "Prongs won't be happy."

"I do not want anybody, thank you Sirius." Lily said calmly "Where is he?"

"Library...doing homework." He winced "I think this whole 'Head Boy' thing has gone to his head a bit, to be honest."

"Homework? Potter?" Lily's eyebrows were nearing her hairline and Sirius laughed.

"Yeah. I'll walk down with you if you want - I need to see Remus."

There was no excuse, so Lily shrugged "Yeah, alright then."

"See you later, ladies." Sirius smirked at Marlene who winked back, before opening the portrait for Lily and letting her pass.

Seen as it was only the second of September, sunlight poured in through all the windows, iluminating the castle with a yellow glow and making everything seem ten times brighter.

"Who is it then?" Sirius asked, kicking a pebble along the pave stone corridor.

Lily bent to pick it up "Who's what?"

"Who do you like?"

"Nobody."

"I won't tell him."

"Yeah, right."

He grinned "I mean it...he'd probably kill himself and I wouldn't want to be the cause of that."

She rolled her eyes "I doubt he'd kill himself."

Sirius shrugged as he watched her drop the pebble out of a window "You have no idea how much he likes you."

"I think I do actually."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah...he doesn't 'like' me at all. I'm just the one person he can't get...so he believes that he wants me." she turned to Sirius and he barked a laugh.

"You know - we're more alike than you think, Evans."

Lily's eyes widened slightly "Oh please enlighten me as to how we are even remotely similar."

A wolfish grin came across his face "Because that's what I thought at first. I was adamant that he'd grow out of it once he got you...but then he never got you. And then I realised it wasn't because he couldn't have you, it's because he does honestly want you more than any of the other girls he's had in his time."

She frowned "Is this some kind of joke? There is no way he's told you that."

Sirius shook his head "No, he's never told me but you don't have to be a genius to pick up on it. I'm not good with all this emotional stuff but the way he looks at you - for a bright Witch, I can't believe you've never noticed before."

"He doesn't look at me any differently to any of the other girls he goes out with."

Sirius shook his head again as they reached the library "Yeah, he does. And what other girls? You do know that he hasn't asked anybody out or had sex with anybody for over six months, right?"

The oak doors were infront of them now, but Lily wasn't sure she wanted to go in "I don't believe you."

He shrugged "I wouldn't expect you to...but just go easy on him - he's not as bad as you think."

"Yes he is." She said, pulling the door open.

Sirius chuckled, dropping his voice "Maybe. But he likes you - even I've accepted that and, believe me, that was difficult."

"Well, we'll wait and see then, shall we." She turned to face him "And if you twist anything I've said then I will break your neck."

He laughed quietly "I won't be repeating any of this to him."

Lily frowned "Then why did we have this conversation?"

His eyes widened "Oh - you think he told me to say all of this?"

"Well...yeah, actually. That or you plan on telling him."

"No...he'd kill me."

"Then why-"

"He's my best friend," Sirius said simply, picking a loose thread from his jumper and shrugging "I want him to be happy." And then he turned the corner, around which James and Remus were both sat at a large oak desk. "Prongs mate, your bird's waiting."

Lily rolled her eyes as she watched Sirius Black transform back into the annoying idiot she'd known for seven years.

James looked up, caught Lily's eye and then stood "Sorry, Evans...I was doing homework. Am I late?"

"I know...it's the talk of the school." She raised her eyebrows and James laughed "No, not yet. We were supposed to meet on the fifth floor at eight."

He frowned "Thought so...but why are you here?"

"Sirius was coming down here so I thought I'd join him. We're very good friends, you see." She said sarcastically.

Remus laughed, Sirius winked and James merely smirked "Awesome...one sec."

Lily nodded and turned the corner, glancing at the titles on the second shelf up. She showed no sign of recognition but let a small smile creep onto her face as she heard James mutter "First name terms, eh _Sirius_? Lucky git."

x

Please Review!


	5. Round Number One

Sometimes, James Potter hated Lily Evans. He hated the way her long hair glowed in the setting sunlight and he hated the way her emerald eyes glinted when she'd outsmarted him. He hated the way he was instantly happier when she smiled, and he detested the warm feeling he'd get in his stomach when she brushed passed him. He hated the way he was no longer interested in anybody else and he hated the fact that it was entirely her fault.

Of course, he didn't only hate her. As his Father would often say, there's a thin line between love and hate - and one can't survive without the other. This saying is what had cheered him up for the past three years - every time Lily had said she 'hated' him. He knew that she either didn't _hate_ him, and it was a mere dislike...or - what he never even allowed himself to imagine - she may actually hate him...which would be more than he could ever ask for because with that hate would, eventually, come love.

"Evans." James said calmly, glancing at his reflection as the crossed the Transfiguration Courtyard in silence "Whats the matter?"

Her eyes met his and then she glanced away again "Nothing."

"You're trying to work something out."

"I'm not...well...yes. But no, it doesn't matter."

"Sure?"

"Yes. There's no obligation to be nice to me in this agreement that we have, Potter. You just have to tolerate me...so stop."

He cocked an eyebrow "And what if I just want to be nice to you?"

She shook her head, avoiding his question "How do you know I'm figuring something out?"

He smiled "I sat opposite you in Transfiguration all last year - you pull a certain face when you're struggling with something."

she raised her eyebrows "No I don't."

"Yeah," He nodded "You do, actually."

"No I don't -"

"Yes," He cut her off "You bight your lip and crinkle your nose."

"And do you pay this much attention to everybody?" She asked, alarmed.

He shrugged "Sometimes. But your face is pretty obvious, it's not like watching out for somebody to flare their nostrils or mess with a certain bit of hair occasionally - they're little things. Your expression stands out a mile."

She rubbed her forehead, confused. "Seriously - why?"

"Why, what?"

"_Why_ are you being nice?"

He smirked annoyingly "You could just accept that I'm a nice person rather than stressing yourself out over me."

She took a deep breath "I am not _stressing myself out_ over you."

"Well you clearly are."

"No I'm not. And as for you being a nice person - I know full well that you aren't."

"What am I then?" He looked highly amused.

"You're a bullying, egotistic, self centred idiot."

He frowned, but didn't look particularly upset "Come on, Evans...I'm not that bad."

"Yes you are."

He sighed "You want to know why I'm being nice?"

"Please enlighten me."

He shoved his hands into his trouser pockets, shirt sleeves rolled up and top button undone "Well...I'm actually trying to make this job as easy as possible for you because I know full how much you hate me," He said easily "So maybe, despite being an egotistic, self centred idiot, I'm not quite as bad as you think."

Lily's eyes widened for a minute and then she smirked slightly "You missed out bullying."

He raised an eyebrow and a smile tugged at the corners of his lips. They wandered around in silence for a while until they wound up in the clock tower, where James stopped. He walked out onto the brick balcony from which they could see Hogsmeade and half of the Forbidden Forest. The sun was setting dramatically into the trees, illuminating them in a way Lily had never seen before. James rested his elbows on the wall and his chin on his hands.

"Tired?" She asked gently, leaning on the wall beside him.

"I was doing homework until one o'clock." He supplied as an answer.

Lily rolled her eyes "Great Head Boy behaviour there, Potter."

"Thought it would be." He grinned, and she surpressed a smile, looking over the grounds of the place that would only be her home for another few months.

They stood quietly for a minute, both thinking the same thing. It was James, however, who voiced it first.

"I'll miss it."

"Me too." Lily said softly.

James laughed and she turned her head quickly.

"What?"

He grinned "See that tree on the edge of the Forest?"

"Potter, there are a whole bunch of trees on the edge of the forest."

He pointed to a spot below them "There - directly below Hagrid's chimney. The really tall one...the top of it looks like a mushroom."

"What about it?"

"Me and Padfoot were out in the middle of the night in third year and Filch must have found out because he came into the Forest and we had to climb it and there's a massive colony of Bowtruckle's up there. They weren't very happy." He chuckled.

Lily looked appalled "And they made you Head Boy?"

He grinned "Looks like it."

"I may as well be working with Sirius."

James laughed and followed her back inside, as it was cooler once the sun had set.

"Who would you rather be working with - me or Padfoot?"

Lily thought for a moment "Sirius. Deffinitely Sirius."

James rolled his eyes "Yeah, right."

She smirked and said nothing.

They were quiet for a moment before James asked something that had bothered him for while "Let me ask you something...and you have to be honest."

She raised an eyebrow "Depends on the question."

He smirked, looking down and then said "You've never had any problem understanding who I mean when I accidently refer to him as Padfoot, or Remus Moony, or Peter Wormtail. Or when they refer to me as-"

"Prongs." She answered quietly, and he raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah."

"Well," she said, picking a piece of paper up from the floor "I figured it was a reference to the fact you're all unregistered animaguses and Remus is a Werewolf."

James coughed "Wha - How - What - How do you know about that?"

"I'm pretty clever." She answered simply "Don't underestimate the power of a girl who wnats to know something."

His forehead creased "What did you want to know?"

"In second year I wanted to know where Remus disappeared to every month and that was when I realised he was a Werewolf. As for you lot, you always looked stressed when he'd go to the Shrieking Shack...but in fifth year you stopped looking stressed and just tired. So I guessed you were doing something with him that meant he wouldn't get into trouble..."

"And you came up with the fact we were all unregistered animagus?" He stared "Merlin, Evans - that's a lucky guess."

"No," She smiled "There's more."

"Go on."

"The night before our Transfiguration OWL I realised I hadn't revised animagus so I went upstairs to get the notes I'd made in third year when we covered them and then when I'd finished I was talking to Frank about something and he said you'd all looked really tired that morning and then...I realised."

"Frank Longbottom? Does _he_ know, too? _Merlin_." James messed his hair up, looking stressed.

"No," she said quietly, holding her index finger and thumb an inch apart "I was _this_ close to going to McGonagall...but I didn't end up telling anybody."

James frowned "Why? You hate me, you _really_ dislike Sirius...you've never even _spoken_ to Peter."

Lily looked out of the window at the moon that was now shining brightly above the castle "Yeah...but you were doing it for Remus and him, I actually like."

James messed his hair up again and they continued in silence, until they finished their rounds and ended up in Gryffindor tower. The common room was empty and the last dregs of a fire crackled away. Glancing at her watch, Lily realised it was almost midnight.

"Night, Potter." she said, heading towards the girl's staircase.

"Lily."

Her head snapped around so fast at the use of her first name on his tongue that she was in very grave danger of breaking her neck. "What?"

"Thanks...for not telling McGonagall. We'd be kicked out and in Azkaban or-"

"I know." she said "I know."

He nodded and smiled "Night, then. It's been nice." He raised an eyebrow, glancing at the rota pinned to the noticeboard "So should we make a date for Wednesday or-"

"Go to bed." She said, smiling slightly.

"Night Evans." He winked, and then ran up to his dormitory, leaving Lily to roll her eyes and realise that, really, the night hadn't been quite so terrible.


	6. The Kiss

The day started with a kiss. Some say it began with a fight. Some say it started with the Slytherins. Others would blame the Gryffindors. Few people know that the events of September 3rd 1977 all started with a kiss. A kiss, it so happens, that changed the course of this story dramatically.

Later on in life, both Lily Evans and James Potter wondered what, exactly, would have happened if Sirius Black and Marlene Mckinnon had not been entwined in a corner of the Gryffindor common room, leaning against a tapestry illuminated with sunlight, that patricular morning.

She always assumed things would have ended differently.

He believed that the turnout was inevitable.

In actual fact, they were both correct. Because some things can even overpower magic.

Maybe, it could have happened differently. If Sirius Black had not been otherwise engaged, he may have removed his wand from his back pocket a split-second faster. If Marlene Mckinnon's thoughts had not been elsewhere, she may have heard the Portrait Hole opening and realised, just in time, that it was highly unusual for a Gryffindor to be coming into the dormitory at half past six in the morning.

Perhaps, things could have been different. Perhaps, they could have sensed it. Perhaps, they could of known. Unfortunately, they did not. And so, when several jinxes and hexes were sent their way, the pair were blown off their feet and across the room with a loud crash.

The noise as the two bodies landed heavily on a wooden table echoed throughout the tower and before long the two hooded culprits were no longer alone.

The first person to enter the Common Room was James Potter. The second, it transpired, was Lily Evans. The Head Students shared a fleeting glance of horror, from the pair clad in emerald and silver ties to their best friends lying motionless across the room to the torn wallpaper that the table had ripped.

It happened, as some things do, without any warning.

Their wands were drawn and then three of the Slytherins were lying, out cold on the floor. The remaining three stepped forward, blocking the jinxes sent their way.

"That's her!" Alecto Carrow hissed, her voice dry and raspy "That's the one!"

"Get help!" Lily shouted at a portrait, sending a hex at a boy named Avery whom she heartily disliked.

"Collect him!" Mulciber ordered, firing a burning red arrow from his wand that missed Lily's neck by centimetres.

Avery swept from the room as James and Lily continued to duel with Carrow and Mulciber. He returned a few seconds later, followed by a teenage boy with lank, greasy black hair and a protruding, hooked nose.

For a second, Lily dropped her guard. She forgot the anger that had swelled inside of her and she forgot the desperate need for help that was pumping adrenaline from her toes to the tips of her fingers. For a second, Lily stared.

"What are you doing here?" she asked quietly.

It seemed that Lily had not been the only one distracted. Alecto Carrow was blasted into a stone wall and knocked unconcious, leaving James to turn to the other four in the room, his wand arm outstretched and pointing at Snape's heart.

Snape drew his own wand quickly but Lily stepped between the two "No."

"Evans, move." James said calmly, his eyes not budging from Snape's steady gaze.

"No, Severus - why are you here?" Her voice was desparate, almost as if she was pleading for him to prove her suspicions wrong.

"He's here to make us all sure of where his loyalties lie...aren't you?" Mulciber said softly. His wand was out, but the jinxes had ceased which made it clear that the reason for their visit was upon them.

Lily frowned "What-"

"He's not going to hurt you...he's just going to tell you something. He's going to tell you what he thinks of you."

Snape looked up, meeting Lily's gaze for the first time in months. His black eyes were cold "You - You aren't worthy of...You're a mudblood."

"You don't think that." Lily snapped, all hope vanished "You've never thought that. It's just that you don't want these two to go running off to Voldemort-"

Avery and Mulciber gasped "How _dare_ you use hi-"

"It's a fucking name, get over it." James said, losing his patience and slicing his wand through the air, resulting in a deep gash down the boy's cheekbone.

"You dirty little-" Wands were drawn again as complicated hexes began to flow between Mulciber and James. Avery pulled out his wand and pointed it at Lily, but she was quicker than him. Her temper at a peak, she easily disarmed him and sent a jet of what looked like red gas from the tip of her wand straight at his face. Within seconds, he was unconcious on the floor. With a disdainful look, she turned her wand to Snape.

"Do you want me to?" she asked, her voice thick "Because I think you've lowered your standards so much that anything could be expected. We haven't spoken for _six months_ and now _this_?"

Snape's own wand was out, but hanging loosely at his side like a wilting flower "I never wanted to-"

"Yeah, right. You'd do anything they tell you to because you're a spineless little git." She spat, her face flushed and her the centre of her forehead pounding painfully.

He turned a dull shade of pink and seemed to be on the verge of speaking but then the Portrait Hole was swung open and Mcgonagall rushed in. To her credit, her hair was neat, her robes pristine and her shoes shiny - the only untidy thing about her was the flushed expression on her face as she gasped "What in the name of Merlin is happening here?"

x

That fight would go down in Hogwarts History - the morning two Gryffindors beat more than three times as many Slytherins in an unprepared duel. The fight would be talked about for at least three weeks. The fight would be noted in a roll of parchment kept in Dumbledore's office listing only the most serious cases. the fight would be remembered by students and teachers alike.

Not that Lily Evans cared about any of that, at all.

Sat with her back against the cold stone wall of the Hospital Wing, she watched as Madame Pomfrey checked over Marlene in the next bed. Sirius had woken up with nothing more than a busted lip and a bruise above his eyebrow where his head had smacked against Marlene's.

The teenage girl, on the other hand, had landed underneath Sirius and had already been prescribed with two broken ribs, concusion and a smashed wrist. She lay, pale and still on the bed.

"Why isn't she awake yet?" Alice asked for the third time, her voice steady and certain "She should be awake now - Sirius woke up half an hour ago."

"I've told you." Madame Pomfrey answered quickly, without meeting her eyes "The injuries Miss Mckinnon has sustained are more serious. I had to give her a potion to make sure she wouldn't wake when I was reconstructing her wrist."

Lily swallowed and Alice nodded, sitting back down beside her.

"Are you okay?"

"Fine." Said Lily, who had been given a once over and a vile of recuperation potion to drink.

"Do you feel sick at all?" Pomfrey inquired.

"No." She replied quietly, repressing the obvious answer of 'My best friend is lying unconcious infront of me - of course I feel sick'.

"How about your head? How did you bang it?"

Lily ran a finger over the bump on her head "I can't remember. Maybe a jinx...I don't know."

"Okay." Madame Pomfrey looked at Lily gently, her expression much softer "Okay."

Sirius, who had been sitting quietly on the bed opposite Marlene, staring at her with an air of guilt and confusion on his face, swung his legs onto the floor and walked over to sit cross legged on the floor beside Lily's chair. He did not say anything, but continued to look at the dark haired girl.

A stillness took over the room for a minute, broken only by the shallow breathing of the people in the corner. Madame Pomfrey moved away to go and tend to the four Slytherins occupying the beds nearest the enterance.

Suddenly, the doors opened and James Potter strode in, his lips pressed tightly together and his jaw set. He walked straight up to the group at the end and looked Sirius in the eye "Are you okay?"

Sirius nodded dully "Yeah...concuscion, apparently."

"And Marlene?"

"Not woken up yet." His voice was empty and Lily wandered vaguely whether it was because he missed a fight or because he hadn't protected the girl he'd been with.

James nodded and turned his head "Evans?"

"I'm fine."

"You've hurt your head." He stated.

"Just a bump." She replied, almost mechanically. "What did Dumbledore ask you?"

"What happened...why I was involved...who I attacked - the basics." He paused for a moment "He wants to talk to you. McGonagall's got Mulciber and Snape in a classroom somewhere - he's waiting to see you before them."

"Okay." She stood up and Alice touched her arm "Do you want me to come?"

"No." Lily shook her head "Stay with her."

Alice nodded and sat down, James sitting in the seat vacated as Lily left. She could feel his eyes following her, but did not turn around for fear of seeing worry in the eyes she'd become so used to seeing filled with confidence.

With it only being quarter to eight, Hogwarts was still relatively quiet. Lily passed no more than seven people and two ghosts on her walk to Dumbledore's office.

"Rhubarb and custard." she said to the gargoyle, who moved aside to let her in.

"Lily," Dumbledore said gravely "Please sit down."

Lily sat opposite him, gripping the arm rests of the wooden chair.

"Please would you give me your account of what happened this morning?" Lily swallowed and Dumbledore smiled slightly "I urge you to not worry about Marlene. Madame Pomfrey is most capable of restoring her to full health."

Lily nodded and exhaled "I woke up at six o'clock when she left the dormitory. I assumed she was going to meet Sirius - she does that sometimes - and tried to get back to sleep but I couldn't so I got up and got dressed and then I heard a really loud noise from the Common Room. Marlene had left the door open and we're only in the second dorm up so I could probably hear it louder than most people. I got my wand and ran downstairs and the first thing I saw was Marlene and Sirius..." Lily took another breath and continued "And then Avery and Mulciber and Carrow and then...then I saw James Potter."

Dumbledore nodded as she recounted the fight and the conversation she'd had with Snape.

"You and Mr Potter both seem to have the impression that they were there for the simple reason of ensuring Severus Snape's so called 'loyalty'." He said slowly "And they went about this through the method of forcing him into calling you unsightly names?"

Lily nodded.

"So why, I wonder, if they were looking for you, did they put up such a fight?"

"I don't think that they were expecting Sirius or Marlene to be there and...well...you know what Sirius and Potter are like with Slytherins. He's more talented than them - he would have jinxed them all had he seen them before they got him." Lily shook her head "And Marlene would have helped...especially if she thought they were looking for me."

"Ah."

"And obviously James started the duel with whoever it was he was fighting...It seemed to be all of them, I don't knwo how he-" Lily stopped herself and looked at the floor.

Dumbledore nodded and smiled kindly "Thank you, you have helped me a great deal. And well done, this morning. There are not many qualified wizards who could do what you and Mr Potter did."

Lily smiled slightly and left the office, her head pounding again. She walked slowly down from the seventh floor, going the long way about it so she didn't have to pass the Gryffindor common room on the main staircase. On the third floor, she bumped into Remus Lupin who was looking pale and strained.

"Lily!" He said, grabbing hold of her and enveloping her in a tight hug "Are you okay?"

She felt herself relax at his touch, and felt the first tear of the day fall from her eyes at his kindness. She nodded into the crook of his neck, but said nothing in fear of her voice breaking. Remus held her for several minutes, before pulling away to look at her "Your head?"

"Just a bump." She wiped her eyes quickly, making them sting "Marlene's still unconscious."

Remus looked sombre "I was just on my way to the Hospital Wing - how's Sirius?"

"I think he might actually feel guilty."

A small smile appeared on his face "He's not as bad as you think."

Lily looked at Remus and was suddenly very grateful that he had found her.

"What about James?"

Lily looked at the floor and a sudden surge of guilt washed over her as she realised that, after he'd fought alongside her, she hadn't even bothred to ask James Potter if he was okay.

"He looked fine. Dumbledore spoke to him first and then me."

Remus looked at her curiously "Are you sure that you're okay?"

"Yeah." Lily said quietly "How did you find out?"

"McGonagall came to wake up me and Peter. Peter went straight down to the Hospital Wing but she told me to go and get Slughorn."

"Oh - what did he say?"

Remus smiled slightly "Well, seeing as he likes you better than ninety percent of the Slytherins in his house, he wasn't too pleased that they'd attacked you."

Lily smiled slightly as they dropped down to the second floor, and then the first where the Hospital Wing lay at the end of a long corridor.

They entered the cool room and walked hastily up to where four people were now crowded around Marlene's bed. Peter looked tired, he rubbed his eyes sleepily and Sirius patted him on the back.

Alice was pale, paler than Lily had noticed before. She looked up at Lily "What did he want?"

"He just asked me what happened and why I was involved."

Alice nodded and sat quietly for a minute before frowning "I still don't understand something."

"What?" Lily asked.

"If you were making such a noise and so many spells were being fired - why did nobody hear?"

"The spells we cast were all done non-verbally." James answered, his voice steady "We thought it was noisier because we were caught up in it but really...really, the only noise was the sound of people being thrown across the room."

The group fell into another silence and Lily looked at the boy sat on the other side of Marlene's bed. His jet-black hair was messy and his eyes were fixated on the stone floor. For a moment, she wondered about him. She wondered what on earth was going through his head. She wondered if he knew that he'd prevented her from being lay on a bed next to Marlene, unconscious. She wondered if he'd done it purposely, or purely by accident.

Suddenly, he looked up and his hazel eyes met hers. He didn't look angry, or even surprised. His gaze was steady, and she held it, wanting to say something but not sure what.

A quick intake of breath from the bed between them made everybody's head snap towards Marlene, who was wincing.

"Who the _fuck_ broke my ribs?"

The colour flooded back to Alice's face as she smiled, exhaling with relief "That would be Sirius."

"Idiot. What did he do that for?" Her eyes were open and alert, but pain was evident on her face.

"Sorry, Mar." He smiled for the first time, then added as an afterthought "I'm concussed."

"Serves you right." She said, a small smile playing on the corners of her lips "What happened?"

"Slytherins." Remus answered "Lots of them."

"Bastards." Marlene answered, as Madame Pomfrey came bustling over.

"Ah - you're awake." Madame Pomfrey said, relief on her face despite the tone that suggested she knew Marlene would be fine.

"Of course I am." She answered, propping herself up with one arm "What happened to my wrist?"

"Crushed under the impact of Mr Black's body, I'm afraid."

"Fat lump."

Madame Pomfrey waved her wand and handed her the vile of potion that had appeared "Drink this."

Marlene pulled her face but did as she was told. She looked up at Lily and then her eyes flicked towards James "I take it you two were involved?"

"Where did you get that from?" Lily smiled, and Marlene laughed.

"You two are involved in everything."

James smirked "True, that."

When Madame Pomfrey had left, the group began to discuss what had happened, explaining to a horrified Marlene that she had been jinxed by several Slytherins. None of them went to any lessons, but Madame Pomfrey didn't do anything to disrupt the group until Marlene's parents arrived, and they were told that only six visitors were allowed at one time.

The group slowly filed out of the room, Lily at the back. She picked up her school robe and was about to leave when Marlene's Father touched her wrist.

"Thank you so much." He smiled.

Lily's eyes widened "For what?"

"McGonagall told us what happened - you fought for her. You must really care about her."

Lily looked at the man who was much taller than her, yet seemed to be at her mercy. "She's my best friend." She shrugged "And she'd do the same for me."

He smiled and Lily walked out of the room. The school was quiet, and Lily glanced at her watch.

"We should be in Potions - if that's what you're wondering." The voice was easy, relaxed.

She turned slowly, before walking up to him so that they were inches apart. With every bit of willpower she had in her body, she forced herself to look into his eyes and say what she should - what was right.

"Thank you."

He looked at her for a moment, and then raised an eyebrow "Wow."

"What?"

"I never thought I'd hear those words coming out of your mouth, Evans."

"In your direction, neither did I." She said, her voice calm and controlled "But I'm a strong believer in doing what is right."

"Sorry?"

"We both know that I could have ended up with a lot worse than a bump on the head had you not been there this morning."

"You don't give yourself enough credit." He said, ignoring her completely.

She shook her head "Whatever. I'm not saying it again."

"No, I think the first time was a miracle." He smirked "That bump on your head may have done more damage than you think."

Despite herself, she laughed "Well...Miracles happen, Potter."

"That, they do." He said softly, before shrugging slightly and walking off down the corridor.

Lily watched him go, wondering why a simple 'You're welcome' would not suffice. But then again, it was James Potter and he, in her opinion, had never been a very simple person.

x

This has taken me _so_ long to write because I wanted something different that would make this story unique to all the others that are floating around - but unfortunately, it really isn't that good :')_  
_

Anyway, i'll be quicker next time I promise...please review!


	7. Confessions

"I don't want to go."

"Are we going to have this conversation every time you have a duty?" Marlene sighed "I really don't see why not - he's hot."

"He's James Potter."

"Still hot - I wouldn't mind a bit of him."

"Coming from the girl who's slept with Sirius Black on multiple occasions-"

Marlene laughed, tracing the outline of a flower onto her thumb nail with her wand. With a flick, it began to glow scarlet and then settled as a magnificent orange colour.

"You're good at that." Lily commented.

"What - sleeping with Sirius Black?"

"Actually I was talking about painting nails but whatever."

Marlene cackled, drying her fingernails with a warm gust of wind from her wand before resting them on the white sheets of the iron bed. More than a week had gone by since the incident in the Common Room and Madame Pomfrey was still insisting that Marlene was to stay in the Hospital Wing for at least another fortnight.

"What time is it?"

"Five-to."

"You'd better go - your date starts at eight."

Lily shot her best friend a disgusted look, before standing up and walking towards the door.

When Marlene shouted "Enjoy yourself!", Lily could practically hear the grin on her face.

She walked down to the enterance hall to find James Potter leaning against the front doors, one foot resting on the wall and a smirk on his face as he caught her eye. The kind of casual arrogance that can only be achieved after years of admiration seemed to flow from every cell of his body and it was then that Lily realised that this overinflated state of self confidence was probably what made him 'hot' in everybody else's eyes.

"What are you smirking at?"

"I don't smoke, it's bad for you."

Lily looked at him, the lack of amusement evident on her face "Funny."

"Yes, I'm hilarious."

He winked and they left the castle, walking across the courtyard. Outside, the sun was hovering over the top of the forest but still bright. The sky was a clear, cloudless blue, slowly melting into purple by the mountains as dusk began to settle.

They walked across the viaduct in silence, Lily's irritation growing with James' smirk.

"Seriously." she snapped, after almost an hour of this. "_What_ is so funny?"

"Nothing," He said, and then caught her eye and laughed "Okay - sorry...but this."

"_What_?"

"I don't know, really." He smiled, messing up his hair absently and making her blood boil "It's just that doing these duties with me clearly irritates you and you have no idea how atractive you are when you're angry."

This caught her off guard. She stared at him for a moment and then within seconds her wand was out, pointing at his throat and pinning him to the wall.

He looked down at her, his voice amused "Go on, Evans; Hex me - I dare you."

"You've just broken our agreement - I'm perfetly within my rights to hex you."

"You asked me what I was laughing at."

"You didn't answer my question." She retorted.

"Oh, sorry - did you not understand?" He cocked his head to one side "I was laughing because, when you get that look on your face that makes it perfectly clear you want to punch me in the face, it just makes me want to throw you against a wall and give you a really good shag." He raised an eyebrow "Do you not find that funny?"

"You obnoxious little-" She started, waving her wand and sending a jinx in his direction.

His wand was suddenly out and he bloxed the spell easily. Lily responded with several more hexes, none of which met their target. They duelled for a few minutes, James putting in more effort than he would strictly have liked - she was a very talented Witch. Eventually, he span her around and pinned her wrists to the stone wall with his hands, looking down at her and breathing heavily - he had won with sheer force, not because he was any better than her - simply because he was stronger.

"Evans, stop."

She looked up at him, staring daggers "I detest you."

"I know." He nodded, and let her wrists drop as she stopped fighting against him "And that's a shame, really...seen as I've spent the past seven years of my education trying to get you to like me."

"You broke our deal." She said, ignoring him completely "I knew you would."

"You asked what I was laughing at." He replied, irritated.

"You're disgusting."

"What - for finding you attractive? More than attractive, honestly. I think - no, I _know_ that you're the most beautiful person I've ever met."

"You said you'd stop this!" She exclaimed, gesturing towards him with a desperate wave of her arms "You only want me because you can't have me!"

"No I don't." He said simply, and the calm tone of his voice opposed to all the shouting made her suddenly listen. "I _really_ do not."

She looked at him and ran a hand through her long fiery mane of hair, waiting for him to continue.

"I don't want you because I can't have you."

She shook her head "Even if you genuinely think that, and this isn't just another scam of yours to get into my pants, once you had me you'd get bored. Believe me."

"Why are you so determined to see the worst in me and the best in everybody else?" He laughed humourlessly "_Snape_ bursts into the Common Room after a load of future Death Eaters nearly kill your best friend and you're that desperate to believe he isn't involved that you ask him what he's doing...then _I _tell you how perfect I think you are and you think it's a scam to get into your pants?"

"You don't understand. _He_ was my best friend and-"

"And if they told him to hurt you..._he_ would. You said it yourself."

To this, Lily did not have an adequate response so she just looked at the seventeen year old infront of her.

"You know, it doesn't even matter any more." He ran another hand through his hair "I give up."

She watched as he walked away, clad in jeans and a hooded Quidditch jumper. His hair was sticking up at the back as always and his hands were shoved deep into his pockets. He did not turn around as he turned the corner, out of her sight and into the school.

Lily put her head into both hands and exhaled heavily, wondering what on earth had just happened. One thing was certain - working with James Potter was no longer an option.

x

The walk to McGonagall's office was quick - Lily let her feet guide her while her mind replayed the conversation-arguement-duel she'd just had.

"Evans?" The woman's voice broke through Lily's thoughts, as crisp and sharp as ever.

Lily gestured to the door infront of her as Mcgonagall walked up to corridor towards her "Can I talk to you?"

She frowned for a moment but then nodded, unlocking the office with a wave of her wand. She walked around the wooden desk and sat, gesturing for Lily to do the same.

"I quit." she said quietly, and Mcgonagall raised an eyebrow.

"_Quit_? Quit _what_?"

"I don't want to - I can't be Head Girl any more."

"No." Mcgonagall said simply, and then "Sit down.", for Lily was still stood up.

She sighed and sat opposite her Head of House "I can't work with him."

"It's not even been two weeks yet." She said "I'd expect a Gryffindor such as yourself to have a little more willpower."

"You have no idea what he's like!" Lily exclaimed, irritated "One minute he's being a cocky, egotistic dickhead and the next he's practically confessing his love for me - could you work with that? I don't know what Dumbledore was thinking - putting us together!" She shrank backwards into the chair, suddenly very quiet as if all the puff had been taken out of her.

McGonagall watched her steadily for what seemed to be a very long time and Lily half expected to be expelled - after all, if you were going to shout and swear at any teacher at all, Minerva McGonagall was possibly the worst option to go with.

What actually happened, however, was something Lily would never have guessed. A small, yet steely glint unlike no other Lily had ever seen appeared in McGonagall's eye and her lips curved into a slight smile "I strongly believe that Mr Potter gets equally as worked up as you do with him - he just hides it better. If, and I'm assuming myself to be correct here, he has had some kind of outburst this evening, then it has been a long time coming and you aren't in danger of another one any time soon."

Lily looked at McGonagall "Are you going to let me quit?"

"No." She shook her head "But I will change the rota so that you don't have to spend so much time with him."

Lily smiled weakly "Thank you...and I'm sorry for shouting."

"That's okay." McGonagall smiled slightly "And, just so that you know...it wasn't Professor Dumbledore's idea to have you two as Head Students."

Lily's eyes widened "Y_ou_?"

She nodded "And if I didn't have full faith in the pair of you - I would not have suggested it. Now, I suggest you go and get some sleep."

Lily nodded, standing up "Night, Professor."

"Good night, Lily."

x

Please review, it makes me happy :)


	8. The Library

Lily Evans and James Potter avoided each other rather impressively for almost three and a half weeks. Some would say that, as Head Students, this feat was impossible. Somehow, though, they managed it.

Lily through herself into work - in the evenings, she could only be found in the Library or locked away in her dorm, scribbling notes on Goblin Rebellion and Patronus Charms. Once her work was finished, she would practice non-verbal incantations so much that within two weeks, even the ones Severus had invented years ago could be cast without a peep.

James through himself into Quidditch. Much to the discomfort of his team mates, he took to Captaining practices that often lasted for over four hours. to be fair, they absolutely smashed Ravenclaw in the first match of the season but, for the Gryffindor Quidditch team who had been woken up at five o'clock on several Saturday mornings, this was little consolation.

Lily carried out her duties with Remus Lupin, talking about everything other than his best friend.

James carried out his duties with a Hufflepuff called Davey Gudgeon, to whom he had never spoken in his life.

Both were as unwilling to talk about the other as they were think of them - Lily spent all day distracting herself with work, eating and talking until she could get in the hot shower of the Prefect's bathroom and contemplate James Potter. He would slowly creep into her thoughts like a draught until every corner of her mind was filled with him.

James, on the other hand, did a fine job of pretending he had never heard of Lily Evans until, at the end of the day, he could grab hold of his broomstick and contemplate the fiery haired girl in the darkness of the Quidditch Pitch where nobody could see or hear him.

During classes, it was as if the other did not exist. The pair ignored each other so intensely it was as if they were complete strangers.

It wasn't until a rainy Thursday evening at the start of October that the pair showed and interaction whatsoever.

Hogwarts Library was quiet, the only sounds were that of rain hitting the glass windows and quills scribbling on parchment. Lily Evans was sat on a wooden desk, an oil lamp providing the secluded corner with a feint orange glow that bounced off the many bookcases, creating mysterious shadows and patterns.

She was on her third paragraph of explaining the counter curse to _Fiendfire _when James Potter walked calmly around the corner. He studied her for a minute and nodded in aknowledgement "Evans."

"Potter." Lily replied. Her hair seemed to glow in the light, making her complexion creamy and flawless. Like James, she was still in her uniform despite the late hour; her black skirt was tight, revealing a small amount of thigh but not enough to be repremanded for. Her tie was nowhere to be seen and the first few buttons at the top of her white shirt were unfastened.

"And how are you?" He asked pleasantly, placing a book back onto the shelf with a soft thud.

"Fine, thank you." She paused "You?"

"Alright, thanks."

She nodded "Congratulations on your win."

He smiled "Impressive, wasn't it?"

She shrugged "I don't know much about Quidditch."

He shook his head, an amused glint in his eye as he continued to replace the books in his arms.

"Seen as you're here," She started "We need to organise a Prefect meeting."

"Fair point." He stood up and placed a book on the shelf behind her head "So are we speaking now, or what?"

"I didn't think we weren't-"

"Oh, come off it."

She smiled slightly "We're talking - aren't we?"

He rolled his eyes, watching her as she packed up her things "You know what sucks?"

"What, Potter?"

"That you're so close-minded and determined to hate me that you won't even _imagine_ liking me back." His voice was calm and controlled, but she span around as if he had shouted.

"You have no idea what you're talking about." she answered, stepping towards him, a sudden look of cold fury burning in her emerald eyes.

"Has it ever crossed your mind that you might actually be wrong about something, for once in your life?" He asked "You do realise, that if you didn't care about me at all then I wouldn't be able to wind you up so much." He gestured between him "Go on, look me in the eye and tell me that you don't feel even remotely the same way."

She looked at the boy infront of her, from the slight stubble on his chin to the way his tie hung loosely around his neck; from the messy black hair to the glasses making a dint on the bridge of his nose; from the furrowed eyebrows to the way his top button was unfastened; from the Quidditch-toned arms, highlighted by two rolled up sleeves to the penetrating look in his hazel eyes as she met them. A very strange feeling began in her stomach and made its way to the tips of her toes. It was as if she'd just drank fire whisky or eaten something warm on a cold day. Something similar to the jerk of a Portkey made her step even closer to him, so they were almost nose to nose.

"I don't feel-" But she stopped herself because what she was about to say was a downright lie "I've never liked you like that."

"You've never liked me, full stop." He said softly, a small smile on his face.

"True." She replied, looking up at him.

"So?"

"So what?"

"Come on, Evans..." He tilted his head "Tell me that you don't feel the same way."

"I can't - I don't know how you feel."

A trace of humour flickered through his eyes "To make this as simple as possible - I want you."

"You want me?" She raised an eyebrow "Charming."

"More than anything in the world."

"And how many girls have you said that to?" She asked quietly, feeling his warm breath on her face.

"Non, actually. I may have slept with my fair share of women but I do have some moral values." He smiled at her expression "I don't tell lies, and _that_ would be a pretty huge lie to tell."

For the first time, she met his gaze properly and then before she could do anything about it, her hands were in his hair, his were pushing her towards the bookshelf and his hot lips were melting against hers. She crashed against the wooden shelves and moaned slightly as he began to kiss her neck, his hands riding up her skirt as her own began to unbutton his shirt. As she felt her hands drop to the zipper on his trousers, Lily thought _muffliato_ in her head, and was eternally grateful for those hours practising non-verbal spells.

x

James Potter looked around the dungeon several times, examining every single face and yet failing to find the one he was searching for.

"What is it?" Sirius hissed into his ear "Why are you being so twitchy and weird?"

"I-nothing." James replied "I just didn't get much sleep last night."

Sirius frowned - despite many years of seeing James go without any sleep at all for one reason or another, he had never seen it affect his best friend like this.

"I don't buy it."

"What don't you buy?" James asked, dropping a few dried slugs into his cauldron.

"You."

"He's right," Remus offered, as James opened his mouth "This is not how sleep deprivation affects you."

James shook his head "Whatever, I'm -"

The classroom door opened and, with the speed he turned his head, James Potter was in grave danger of damaging his neck.

Lily Evans walked calmly into the classroom, school bag slung over one shoulder and an unreadable expression on her face.

"Lily!" Boomed Slughorn "There you are!"

"Sorry, sir - I was helping Proffessor Flitwick tidy up."

"Ah, what was the matter?"

"Somebody had made an - erm, mess in the Library. There were books all over the place and you know how Madame Pince gets.."

"Well, good to have you back," He smiled warmly at her and wandered off, muttering slightly.

Lily set her bag down next to Alice and did nothing but smile politely up at the three boys and catching James' eye for a split-second before sorting her ingredients. Something between exhaling and a laugh came out of his mouth as he walked off to go and collect some newt eyes from the store cupboard, ignoring the worried look Sirius was giving him and smiling to himself.


	9. Remus Lupin

"You did _what_?" Remus Lupin stared at the girl beside him, not believeing what he was hearing "This _is_ a joke, isn't it?"

Lily looked at him disbelievingly "Would I joke about this?"

"How did - what - how - why did you - when-"

"I don't even know." She looked at the floor, frowing "Has he not said anything?"

"No." Remus replied, frowing "And I really have _no_ idea why not because it's the sort of thing he'd usually scream from the rooftops." He shook his head "I can't believe it."

"Neither can I. I do not have sex with people I hate in the school Library. The _Library_, Remus."

He smiled "Your place of worship."

"Urgh!" she said, her face buried into her hands "I had sex with _James Potter_."

He shook his head "I cant believe it."

"No...It didn't really sink in until I was sat in the Great Hall about to eat my tea and - oh _God_."

Remus patted her shoulder consolingly, as her face was once again deep her hands "Was this why he was so edgy this morning when you weren't in Potions - oh Merlin, _you two_ made the mess in the Library!"

"Edgy?" Her head snapped up "He was edgy?"

"Yeah; it was like he couldn't sit still and he was looking all around the classroom for something - for you, I suppose."

Lily moaned "What have I done?"

"James."

"I said _what_ not _who_." she responded, pushing the hair from her face "Oh my God."

"What made you-"

"I don't know!" she sighed "He was just there and he was looking all...I don't even know but one minute we were talking and then he said he _wanted me_ and then the next I've got my legs wrapped around his-"

"Alright I get the picture." Remus cut her off and there was a small pause "You seemed very calm this morning."

"Well, like I said, it didn't sink in until I was half way through dinner and then I had to run out of the Great Hall and throw up." She shook her head sadly "I had sex with James Potter."

Remus nodded as grey drizzle began to hit a nearby window. The floor of the stone corridor was cold and hard, filling Lily with an uncomfortable feeling from her feet upwards.

"Have you spoken to him?"

In response she shook her head.

"Are you going to?"

She shrugged "I have no idea. I suppose I'll have to..."

They were quiet for a moment, listening to nothing but the now heavy rain beating against the castle walls.

"Why me?" After about fifteen minutes, Remus spoke softly "Not Marlene, not even Alice...why me?"

Lily shook her head "I don't know. Alice would...she'd be horrified and she wouldn't understand why I did it - I don't even understand why I did it so I can't explain it to her."

"Marlene?"

"Marlene would understand better but she wouldn't take it seriously - it would make her entire year. She'd just laugh for a really long time and make comments whenever he happen to be in the room."

Remus nodded "Still, though - why me?"

Lily shrugged "I suppose you were my third option. You listen, you'll take me seriously, you give decent advice and, well...you know him, I suppose."

"That, I do." He sighed "Not that it gives me much of an advantage - I can't believe he hasn't said anything!"

"To everybody, or just you?"

He shook his head "No, I'm not insulted - just surprised. If he doesn't want to tell anybody then that's his decision, I just can't figure out _why_."

Lily shrugged "I don't know - I hardly know him."

"Says the girl who had her legs around his back last night."

Lily hit his arm and Remus laughed, shaking his head "Blimey."

"What?"

"He's changed."

She frowned "What are you talking about?"

"Well," He rubbed the back of his neck "You know how he's had this thing over you for ages?"

She raised an eyebrow "Hmm."

"Well, he must have realised over summer at some point that the reason you wouldn't go out with him is because he's so arrogant and egotistic and, well, all the other names you've called him over the past seven years."

"Correct."

"Yes, well he decided that he was going to change so that he might actually have a chance with you. Obviously, we didn't believe he would - Sirius nearly wet himself, but that's beside the point."

"What is the point?"

"Think back to this time, last year."

"Yeah."

"Imagine you'd had sex with him...what would he do - the very first thing?"

She frowned "I don't know?"

"Tell people, Lily. And he hasn't - not even his best friends."

x

James Potter looked up from his Charms essay as the Portrait Hole opened and a teenage girl walked in. The dying embers of the fire were the only source of light in the circular room.

"Evening." He raised an eyebrow.

Lily looked at him for a moment. Of all the people to be up at quarter to twelve, it _would _be James Potter - that was just her luck._  
_

"Why are you still awake?"

He laughed "Quidditch practice, sweetheart."

"_Quidditch practice_ ended at eleven - I saw Marlene on her way back."

He waved lazily to the parchment infront of him "Hence why I'm doing this _now_."

Lily shook her head and made to walk away, but James continued the conversation.

"Any idea where Remus is?"

"Kitchens." She replied "He was hungry when we'd finished-"

"Finished?" James raised a mocking eyebrow "So that's half the group you've shagged on two consecutive evenings?"

"-Our duty."

He said nothing but let the corners of his mouth curve into a smile.

"Why haven't you told anyone?" Her voice was quiet but sincere, causing goosebumps to erupt down his arms.

"Do you want me to?"

"Of course not."

"Didn't think so."

She shook her head "I just assumed you would."

He messed his hair up with one hand and looked at her steadily "Why?"

"I don't know," She shrugged "Because that's just _you_."

"Me?"

"Yeah - I assumed you'd be so proud-"

"Oh, I am."

"-That you wouldn't be able to control yourself."

"Yeah, well," He said, "Maybe I have more self control than you think."

"And are you going to?"

"Not if you don't want me to."

"No, I don't but I'd rather you told people now rather than drop it into conversation in six months time when I'm least expecting it."

He smiled "You need to learn to trust people."

"I _do_ trust people - just not you."

"Well it looks like you're going to have to, doesn't it?"

Lily was about to respond but the Portrait Hole swung open and Remus walked in, a bar of Honeydukes chocolate in his hand.

He looked from James to Lily, before holding out his arm "Chocolate?"

"No thanks." Lily said, taking her eyes away from James "Good night."

Both boys watched her disappear up the girls staircase and heard the soft thud of a closing of a door two flights up.

"Alright?" Remus asked tentatively.

"Bloody women..." James responded, before nodding "Yeah, I'm fine thanks."

"She'll get it." Remus said.

"Get what?"

"You...how you feel...you know, all of it - eventually, she'll understand."

"And how do you know how I feel?" James smiled.

"Just a hunch." He shrugged "But I've never seen anybody look at a girl the way you look at Lily Evans."

James laughed softly, before gathering his essay and ink and following Remus up the boy's stairs to a bed where he hoped he could escape from thoughts of the Head Girl.

But of course, she plagued his dreams as much as his thoughts.

x


	10. Quidditch

October was over far too quickly, in the opinion of all the students in their final year - assignments were falling thick and fast, stacks and stacks of homework were expected to be done and all of this, along with Quidditch, Prefect Duties and the Marauder's monthly trip out of Hogwarts really did leave James Potter with little time to think about Lily Evans.

Occasionally, as he sat in his seat in the far corner of the Charms classroom, looking at the back of her head, he would wonder if that night had just been a particularly good dream. This would dishearten him somewhat, however, and he would wait to be reasured by her obvious unwillingness to meet his gaze or share his company.

That night had been one of the best of his life - he'd never imagined that sex could, or would ever be _that_ good, and he'd slept with his fair share of girls since the age of fifteen. After weeks of wondering how a virgin could possibly be _that_ good, he'd come to the conclusion that it was simply Lily Evans, and he would never be able to fathom her ways or means - she was like a representation of human life, something that could be technically explained but never completely understood.

"When's the match?" Sirius asked, midway through November. Sleet was falling against the classroom window and James was finding it incredibly hard to stay awake, never mind listen to the voice of Proffessor Slinkslope, the resident Defence Against the Dark Arts Proffessor for that particular year.

"What?"

"Quidditch - you're playing, aren't you?"

"Oh, right, yeah; Saturday."

"Thought it was."

"Why?"

"I've got detention with Pince - I'm hoping she'll let me out for the start, though."

"What did you get it for?" James asked, surprised - he and Sirius rarely got into trouble without the other knowing or being directly involved.

Sirius smirked "Do you remember that book that we burned in second year?"

James frowned "Which one?"

"The third one - the one that turned out to be the Library's, not Wormtail's."

James smirked slightly, recalling a lot of smoke, the panicked voice of Peter Pettigrew and the barking laughter of his best friend "Yeah."

"And then when we found out the old bat had put a load of hexes on the thing so it could reconstruct itself after it had been burned?"

"Yeah." James laughed "But what's this got to do with anything? It was five years ago and we hid it under that book about making potions with human brains."

"Well, it turns out that old Pincey took a trip into the restricted section on Tuesday night and found it."

"How did she know you did it?" James laughed, rembering the singed pages.

"One of the hexes she put on the stupid thing makes the name of whoever damaged it appear all over it a month later and we'd hid it before then so we didn't know..." He shook his head, but smirked "She looked like she wanted to murder me."

"Why was it just your name? I was there-"

"Didn't cast the spell, though, did you Prongsy mate?"

James laughed loudly.

"Mr Potter, is there an issue?" Slinkslope asked.

"No, Sir." James said, biting back a smile.

"Well then, perhaps moving next to Miss Evans will restrain you from laughing." He gestured to the empty seat to Lily's left as the girl in question shot a filthy look towards Marlene and Alice, who were sat together at one of the two-man desks.

"Sir," Lily said quickly "I know you've only been here for a few months, but you really don't understand - sitting _him_ next to me will not improve his learning whatsoever."

"And why is that?"

She shrugged "Just doesn't work - you can ask any teacher who's ever tried it."

He raised an eyebrow, eyeing the badges on their jumpers "Aren't you the Head Students?"

"Yes." she said "But it requires less interaction than you'd expect."

He looked at James "And what do you think about this, Mr Potter?"

"I think she has a point, it's never worked before." He grinned "But then again, she's Lily Evans, and I'd be an idiot to turn down a seat next to her."

She rolled her eyes and Slinkslope smiled "We'll see how it goes then, shall we?"

James grinned as he dropped into the seat beside her "Hey, Evans."

She said nothing but continued to listen to Slinkslope, despite the fact he was covering something that James knew perfectly well she had already mastered: non-verbal blocking spells.

x

Saturday came around quickly, as wet and grey as the rest of the week had been. The Gryffindor Quidditch team were gathered inside the changing rooms, dressed and silent.

A dark figure appeared in the doorway and Sirius black jogged into the room, shaking the water droplets from his hair in the same way he did in his canine form.

"Got out, then?" James asked.

"Just about - she doesn't know I left."

James smiled and messed up his hair, turning his gaze to the outside once again.

"Great conditions." Marlene said sarcastically, watching Sirius light a cigarette in the open doorway. Icy rain was falling heavily outside, hitting the wooden flooring noisily.

James said nothing, but passed her the broomstick that lay behind him on a bench.

"You think we'll win?" A third year chaser asked nervously, eyeing up the weather.

"You'd better do." Sirius answered "That's my dear brother you're playing."

The boy looked confused for a moment, until James explained "They don't get on, Robin."

Sirius snorted "He's a pillock."

"He is." James agreed, picking up his own broomstick "Right - listen to me, all of you."

Every head turned to face him and he looked at them seriously "You're better than the Slytherin team. You've had better training than them and you're all naturally more skilled. Marlene," He turned to look at his seeker "Get the snitch as early as possible - before Regulus, anyway. Robin, Christopher," He looked at the two brothers, one in third year, one in fifth "Help me get as many goals as possible - you've both got a brilliant aim so the weather shouldn't make a difference. Beaters," He looked at the two fifth year boys, Richard Johnson and Jamie Whisker "Play as dirty as you like, but don't get caught. And Lola," He looked at the sixth year, blonde haired girl by the door "Don't let them get too many in."

"Have I ever?" She asked, and James smiled slightly.

"No, so don't break the tradition."

She smiled and leant against the door as James continued.

"Remember that you're better than them - there's no reason whatsoever why you shouldn't be able to beat them. Ready?"

Team nodded, grabbed their broomsticks and headed out onto the muddy pitch.

x

They were winning, when it happened.

Robin and Christopher Nichols had scored seven goals between them, and James had scored six by himself.

Lola Wood had only let in two goals out of the seventeen attempts and flew around the hoops with so much confidence that it intimidated anybody who came close.

In thirty four minutes, Richard Johnson and Jamie whisker had collectively broken one jaw, snapped three ribs and caused four rather large bumps to the head.

Marlene Mckinnon had had Regulus Black on her tale from the moments the balls had been released. The snitch was nowhere to be seen in the darkness, but they were many points up, and the Slytherins were beginning to resort to their best method of success - violence.

"Shagged my brother recently?" Regulus called to Marlene, his voice disappearing with the elements.

"Shagged _anyone_ recently?" Marlene responded, as Gryffidnor were awarded a penalty many metres below. "Sorry, I forgot, you're a little too young, aren't you?"

Even in the dull light, the blush on Regulus' face was evident. He grabbed the tail of her broom and pulled it backwards sharply, causing her to fly off the front.

She clung desperately to her broom with one hand, dangling thousands of metres in the air. If she let go, nobody would even notice her until it was too late - if she let go, she'd die.

Funnily enough, that was when she saw it. The little speck of gold fluttered by Regulus' ear, glimmering in the heavy sleet that was making every atom in her body ache.

Regulus followed her vision and made a grab fro the snitch that had already disappeared. In this split second, Marlene felt a strong pair of arms grab her from behind and return her to the broomstick.

"Go!" James shouted, and she didn't need telling twice. She sped over Regulus' shoulder after the Snitch, losing him in the dense air of the Quidditch Pitch.

James caught the boy's eye and shot towards the ground. Snarling at his lost opportunity, Regulus fired after him, out of the clouds and into the view of the soaking crowd.

It happened within seconds.

Marlene snatched the snitch of what seemed to be thin air.

The crowd burst into a mixture of wild applause and angry shouts.

Regulus Black realised what had happened.

James Potter turned around too slowly.

Because, with two hands and a lot of force, the Slytherin seeker upturned his broomstick and James Potter, not expecting it, fell fifty feet to the ground.

In the middle of the crowd, Lily Evans looked up and screamed.

x

I've written a lot in the past few days to get out of revision. However, now it must start as I have four exams within the next two weeks...oh dear.

So...please tell me what you think of it so far, improvements, things I could include etc :-)

Adios x


	11. The Hospital Wing

The shouts of victory suddenly turned to screams of horror as the realisation of what had just happened spread out across the stands. Lily Evans was lost in the crowd that swarmed towards the boy who lay, unnaturally still, in the centre of the muddy pitch.

The Gryffindor team gathered around their Captain, shouting his name and calling for help. Mcgonagall and Dumbledore pushed their way through the herd of students, their wands drawn as rain continued to hammer down.

"We need Poppy down here." Dumbledore spoke in a serious tone "We can't move him."

Mcgonagall nodded, "All of you - get to your Common Rooms." the crowd barely moved until she shouted "_Now!"_

Students began to disperse and Mcgonagall sent a silvery tabby cat shooting out of the end of her wand up to the castle. She watched the students start to file out of the pitch, turning her head in time to see Regulus Black land on the ground.

"Black!" She barked, heading towards the dark haired boy.

However, she was not the first to reach him.

Sirius, his hair wet and matted, emerged from the crowds. The impact of his fist smashing into Regulus' jaw made a very loud crunching sound that made an awful lot of heads turn and several people wince.

"You _fucking_ sumbag!" He screamed "You fucking, _fucking _little maggot! He's my best friend you lousy little piece of shit-"

"Black!" Mcgonagall shouted again, and both brothers turned around.

"Sirius!" She corrected herself "Stop!"

"Proffessor-" He started.

"I know." she cut him off "Get Lupin and Pettigrew and meet us at the Hospital Wing. _You_," she rounded on Regulus, fixing his jaw with a violent wave of her wand and pointing up to the castle "Get to my office and _do not even think_ about moving from there before I have given you permission to do so."

Sirius nodded and jogged into the rain but only got so far before he colliding with another running body.

The girl screamed and then looked up "Sirius!"

"Lily?"

"Is he okay?" Her emerald eyes were terrified, her face paler than he'd ever seen it "James - is he okay?"

Sirius did not address the fact that this was the first time he'd ever heard her call him 'James', nor that her eyes were red in a way that suggested the water droplets on her face were not just rain.

"I don't know." He said, his jaw tight.

"Oh my god." Lily made a noise in the back of her throat and ran a hand through her soaking hair. "Oh my god."

"I know." Sirius said "Come on, McGonagall told me to meet them at the Hospital Wing."

Lily nodded and without another word they hurried up to the castle.

x

It was a very long afternoon.

Lily joined Remus, Sirius and Peter as they waited for Madame Pomfrey to emerge from the curtain that she had pulled around James' bed.

None of the three asked what she was doing there - even if they had, she wouldn't have been able to give them an answer.

After three hours of McGonagall coming in to check on the progress, Dumbledore bringing in two St Mungos Healers and Madame Pomfrey pulling them inside the confines of the cream curtain, the three finally stepped out.

"He should be okay." the male Healer said "He's been given a lot of medication...but he should be okay."

McGongall nodded "Thank you so much for coming in."

The woman shook her head. "No problem - Poppy is fantastic, but if there's ever anything that you need help with, don't hestistate to owl us. We have to get back to work now, though."

McGonagall nodded as the two left the room.

Madame Pomfrey looked at her seriously "Another student was responsible for this, Minerva."

"I know, Poppy. I know."

"This is the second time something like this has happened this year - and it's always involving James Potter and a Slytherin or two. Have you noticed?"

"Yes." McGonagall answered patiently.

"I've been dealing with it for years but this is the first time Potter's come away worse. The first time in seven years, I'd say. Who was it?"

"My brother." Sirius snarled, speaking for the first time since the Quidditch Pitch.

Pomfrey's eyes widened but Mcgonagall placed a hand on Sirius' arm "He'll be okay."

Sirius said nothing but looked up at the curtains that were still drawn.

"And did he sustain any injuries at all?"

"A broken jaw." McGonagall replied, glancing at Sirius "But I fixed that myself."

To this, Madame Pomfrey didn't seem to have a reply, so she disappeared behind the curtain again.

"Could we see him?" Remus asked quietly, voicing the question nobody else would "Please?"

Madame Pomfrey's voice drifted over the top of the iron rail that suspended the curtain "He's not pretty."

"I don't care." Sirius shook his head "I need to know that he's okay."

"Very well then." She said, and pulled the curtain back.

She was right - he definitely _wasn't _pretty. He lay still on the white sheets, one his arm in plaster and angry purple bruises down one side of his swollen face. Somehow, despite being unconscious, he was managing to look uncomfortable and this made Lily want to do something. She wanted him to look at her cockily, she wanted him to laugh, she wanted him to run a hand through his hair and tell her she was a prude. She wanted him to do anything but lie there, looking incredibly vulnerable.

"Oh my god." Lily said, for the third time that day. Remus stood beside her and squeezed her hand but his speech was interrupted by the Hospital Wing doors opening. Dumbledore strode in, leading a worried looking couple.

"Mr and Mrs Potter, the Healers have assured us that James is going to make a full recovery." Mcgonagall said quickly, and Lily stared.

Surely these people...these people who looked so worried, so concerned, so genuinely _good_ could not have raised the arrogant, bullying, egotistic teenage boy that they were visiting?

The woman had shoulder length dark brown hair and wore a grey trouser suit with a pale green blouse. On her jacket was a broach in the shape of a poppy and she wore a leaf-green, beaded necklace. Her face was pale as she looked at her son, her eyes red.

The man had black hair with streaks of grey through it, his eyes the exact shade as James'. He wore a black suit with a white shirt and tie - everything from his polished shoes to the wrist on his watch looked proffesional but his eyes were tired and scared.

"I'm so sorry." Sirius said quietly "I'm really, really sorry."

The woman looked up sharply and observed Sirius for a moment, before moving around the bed and hugging him tightly.

"Don't be." She said into his shoulder "None of this is your fault, okay?"

"He's my _brother_." Sirius said.

"He's not _you_, though, is he?" She replied, her voice thick "Don't think he's your responsibility, Sirius."

"And I'm assuming you gave him a good hex?" James' father asked.

"Punch, actually."

"Should have known." He smiled slightly "She's right -it's not your fault."

Sirius nodded and then suddenly looked at Lily, realising for the first time that she did not know these people.

"Erm...this is-" He started.

"Another of James' girlfriends?" The man asked.

"Charlie!" The woman exclaimed "Ignore him, he's just used to, well, you know James...I'm sure he's very fond of-"

"Mrs Potter, I'm Lily Evans." Lily said, holding out her hand "I'm not James' girlfriend. I'm, well, I'm the Head Girl."

Dorcas Potter shook Lily' hand, a look of shock on her face. Her husband caem slightly closer, as if loking at something interesting in a museum.

"_You're _Lily Evans?"

Lily nodded.

"Well, I can certainly see why he likes you."

"Charlie!" Mrs Potter said again.

"What? Surely she's noticed that he'd been asking her out for years!"

Lily smiled slightly and then looked around, wondering what, exactly, they had been told about her "I should go."

Mrs Potter looked at her worriedly "You don't have to, sweetheart."

"No," She shook her head "I need to...it was nice meeting you, Mr and Mrs Potter."

"You too." Mr Potter smiled the same crooked smile as his only son, and Lily found herself smiling back.

She glanced at Mcgonagall, who was observing her with an odd expression, and then walked out of the room into the cool castle. She let her feet guide her along the many corrdiors until she came to the place she'd never used before for fear of bumping into James - the Head's bathroom.

Inside, it was glorious. Like the Prefect bathroom, the bath was built into the floor, resembling a swimming pool and row upon row of elaborate taps began to fill it up with her favourite scents as soon as she entered the room. The ceiling towered over her head and one stained glass window, depicting an underwater scene, made the room dance with several shades of blue.

Lily realised that her hair was still damp and she was freezing cold from the rain that she'd had to endure at the Quidditch match. Numbly, she took off her clothes and slid into the hot water of the bubbling bath.

x

James Potter had been unconscious for five days. He had not moved in these five days, or had he shown any sign of life other than the steady beating of his heart.

On the fifth day, which happened to be a Thursday, Lily found herself walking up to the Hospital Wing after her final lesson. She swung the door open and padded in, the heel of her school shoes tapping on the stone floor. Nobody else was in the room and James' bed was in the middle of the left hand side.

Stubble was emerging on his chin and the bruises on the side of his face had turned a shade of dark green. The swelling had mostly gone, but he still looked incredibly fragile.

"Please be okay." She said quietly, after a moment or two "_Please_ be okay."

And then she left the room, wondering why on earth she missed him so much.

x

"He'll be fine, you know." Alice said quietly, later that evening, as she dropped into the seat beside Lily and began to help herself to a portion of potato pie.

"Sorry?"

Alice raised an eyebrow "James."

"I'm not-"

"Yes you are worried about him, there's no point denying it."

Lily avoided her gaze "I'm just concerned that he's missing a lot of work and, being Head Boy as well, there's a lot of pressure-"

"You don't have to feel guilty about wanting him to be okay."

"I don't want to be a hypocrite."

"What?"

"For the last seven years of my life I've been praying that he'd fall off that broomstick and break his neck and now he has and...and it's awful." She shook her head "Why do I care?"

"He didn't break his neck, he fractured his spine." She smiled, touching Lily's arm "Over the time we've been at this school you've gotten to know James Potter - if he died, I think even you would miss him a little bit."

"It's not that," she shook her head "I need to go outside."

Alice looked concerned, but nodded "Do you want me to come?"

"No, finish your tea...I'm fine, just too hot." She smiled in an unconvincing sort of way and disappeared.

The cold hit her like a brick wall, clearing her mind slightly. It was dry for the first time all day but clouds still swarmed threateningly over the dark grounds, blocking the stars from view. For the first time in her life, Lily Evans had a desire to get on a broomstick and fly.

Not having a broomstick handy, however, she was forced to walk off her feelings. She set off and, despite it already being half past seven, she walked completely around the vast lake and then crossed the grounds, slipping into the castle through one of the courtyards just as the clouds parted, revealing a crescent moon. She realised she was on the first floor, and paused for breath just outside of the Hospital Wing.

The clouds began to clear until until only a few wisps remained. Lily watched the stars twinkle for a moment, completely oblivious to anything else in the dark corridor.

"Missed me, Evans?" The voice came from nowhere, making her spin around in shock.

"What on-"

"I woke up." James Potter smiled "About three hours ago, actually."

His hair was sticking up, his face still very bruised and he held himself oddly, indicating that his spine was still tender.

"You - you...are you okay?" She stared at him.

"Not too bad, thanks." He came to stand behind her, looking out at the stars.

"I thought you were going to - I didn't know if -"

"Evans, I'm fine." He smiled softly and the heat radiating from his body made her feel a whole lot calmer.

"Good." she said quietly "You seem very calm, considering."

"Considering that little bastard pushed me off my broom? Yeah...I think it's the drugs." He smirked, running a hand through his hair.

She smiled "Does she know you're out here?"

"Pomfrey?" He looked at her disbelievingly "Yeah, right. I had to wait until she thought I was asleep until I could sneak out. She hid my wand and everything - I reckon she guessed what I'd do because the door was locked."

Lily said nothing and they fell into a comfortable silence unlike any the pair had ever experienced together before.

"How long are you going to be in the Hospital Wing for?"

He shrugged and then winced "You know what she's like - probably until we leave."

Lily laughed "Oh dear, we'll have to appoint a new Head Boy."

"Shut up, Evans, you know I'm the only person you'd ever want to work with."

She turned her head, eyebrows raised "Really?"

"Sure." He nodded, and then grinned "Can I ask you something?"

"Depends what it is."

He paused for a second "Why are you being nice? Or is it just the drugs making me think you're being nice?"

"No, I'm actually being nice." She turned to face him "It's funny but when the person you despise falls seventy five feet out of the air, you start to question whether or not you _do_ actually hate them or whether...it's something else."

He looked at her and raised an eyebrow "Really?"

"Really." She said, before stepping away and heading down the corridor "I'm glad you're okay, Potter."

James leant against the wall and watched her go, long crimson hair swishing behind her. He ran a hand through his hair and sighed, a very small smile on his lips.


	12. Visiting Prongs

Thank you so much for all the really long reviews they have made my entire week :-) I went back and read over the chapters checking for mistakes and realised I had put 1997 as opposed to 77 so I changed that but James was definitely a chaser - JK Rowling confirmed it in an interview and I checked in multiple places before writing that chapter :) Anyway, thank you again you are all great :D

x

"Prongsy mate!" Sirius shouted, running down the Hospital Wing to James' bed and diving on him "You're alive!"

"Yeah, no thanks to your little prick of a brother."

"Fucker, isn't he?"

"Yeah." James said, and then grinned at the two boys behind Sirius "Alright?"

"Slightly concerned about you, but otherwise...fine, thanks." Remus smiled, relief evident on his face.

"And you, Wormtail?" James asked "Everything alright down there? Merlin, I'm still taller than you sat in bed."

Peter smiled, resembling a kind of fat hamster "Yeah."

"Good." James winked and then looked at Sirius "So, go on then - fill me in."

"Well, I broke Regulus' jaw-"

"Evans said."

Sirius frowned "She was here?"

"Yeah...well, not exactly - she was outside."

"What did she say?" He inquired.

"I think she may have said that she doesn't despise me but I had a lot of medication in me last night - it's all very cloudy."

Remus smiled, sitting at the bottom of James' bed as Peter began to tuck into the box of chocolate frogs on the bedside cabinet.

"I don't think she ever despised you."

"Well she used to tell em she did on a daily basis - Peter you fat pig, leave some for me!"

"I haven't had any breakfast!"

"I don't care! How many have you eaten now - seventeen?"

Sirius howled as Peter put a chocloate cauldron back resentfully, handing James the box.

"She was here when it happeend...she waited for hours - even met your parents." Remus told him.

James choked on his cauldron. Spluttering, his eyes widened "My parents - what - how?"

"Well they were here on Saturday night - they got here just after the Healers told us you'd be okay."

"Healers?" James frowned.

"Yeah, two of them came from St Mungo's...you were pretty bad."

"Wow." He exhaled and then shook his head "She met my parents?"

"All two of them." Sirius grinned.

"And...what did they, what do you think they, do you-"

"They liked her." Remus smiled.

"Oh." James said, but looked rather pleased with himself.

x

Two weeks later, Lily Evans dropped into the wicker chair beside James' bed, a frown on her face.

"Good Afternoon, Evans...and to what do I owe this pleasure?" He smiled, tossing an apple into the air and catching it with one hand whilst holding eye-contact.

"Do you have to show off?"

"Cheerful as ever, I see." He commented, biting the apple and pulling a face "I've never liked apples, you know."

"Why are you eating it then?"

"Me and Pomfrey have an agreement - I've been eating an apple a day for the past week, if I eat this one then she'll let me out tomorrow."

"Oh!" Lily's frown relaxed.

"Missing me that much, are you?"

She rolled her eyes "No, it's just that I've been having to do your duties with Davey Gudgeon and I wouldn't mind but I haven't actually got to sleep before two in the morning this past week and I'm absolutely exhausted-"

"Is that what's up with you, then?" He asked, picking a strand of cotton off his Puddlemere United t-shirt and dropping it on the floor.

"No," she shook her head "That's McGonagall - she's set us a huge essay."

"Ah," He said "And are you here for any particular reason or did you just fancy dropping by?"

She smiled slightly and pulled a lump of parchment out of her bag "No, I have a free period now so Mcgonagall also asked me to give you this."

"And what exactly _is_ this?" He asked, flicking through the yellowed paper.

"The more important elements of the work you've missed," she smiled as he groaned "She doesn't feel that you need to do the whole extent of it because you're good at the subject." She added, a rather bitter tone to her voice.

"Bloody hell, if this is only part of it I'd hate to see what the rest of you have been doing over the past three weeks."

Lily sat back on the chair and closed her eyes "This chair is very uncomfortable."

"You want to join me on the bed?"

"No thank you."

"Didn't think so." He chuckled "I hear you met my parents?"

A small smile tugged at her lips "Yes, I did. they seem very nice."

"They are." He replied "So, how's life? I haven't seen you since the night I woke up."

She shrugged "Not too bad - Sirius misses you."

"He comes to visit twice a day."

"He's used to spending every living minute with you - he's getting rather irritating."

"So...is it better when I'm out of Hospital, then?" He asked innocently.

She opened her eyes and raised an eyebrow but he did nothing but smile, beginning to work on the first essay in front of him.

"How do you do that?" She asked, after a few minutes of watching him scribble onto the paper.

"What?" He asked.

"Transfiguration...you seem to find it so easy."

"I do find it easy." He laughed "Seeing as I'm an unregistered animagus, it's a good job."

She sighed and continued to watch him scribble, a frown on her face.

"It's actually painful for you, isn't it?" He asked, without taking his eyes from the parchment.

"What?"

"This." The smirk in his voice was evident "Watching me do something you struggle with."

"No," She said, before sighing slightly "A little."

He laughed "It doesn't bug you that Remus is better than you, though."

"No."

"Why?"

"Remus Lupin is nowhere near as irritating as you."

He laughed, his eyebrows raised "Merlin."

"What?"

"It's just so funny how much you react to the things I do - of course, I didn't mean to come across as an arse when saying that."

She shook her head and picked up her school bag, standing up "You always come across as an arse."

"Aw, don't go!" He protested, a glint in his eye "I was enjoying myself."

"Good bye, Potter."

"One second," She watched as he moved all the papers from his knee and climbed out of bed, revealing a pair of Superman pyjama bottoms.

"Superman?"

He laughed "They were a present from my Uncle - he used to read me the comics when I was a kid."

"Is there any reason you're out of bed."

"Yes," He said, turning away and walking to the foot of his bed, where his trunk lay. He opened it, delved around inside, moving clothes, old scraps of parchment and the occasional empty bottle of Firewhisky out of the way before he pulled out an envelope, addressed in green ink. "Will you do me a favour?"

"What is it?"

"Will you go to the Owlery and send this, please? I'd go myself but she won't let me out until tomorrow."

Lily took the envelope and dropped it into the pocket of her robes "Can't you go tomorrow?"

"No." He smirked "It's for a new copy of _Advanced Potion Making, _Sirius burned my last one and I need a new one before I go back to lessons."

She rolled her eyes "You know, you could try to break the habit of doing everything last minute."

"I forgot about it!" He grinned "Besides, what would be the fun in that?"

She rolled her eyes and looked at him for a moment - he looked a lot better, although his face was still lightly bruised. He held himself comfortably, in the exact same way as he had before the accident. He could smile without wincing and he seemed to be on barely any medication.

"I was kind of scared about coming here." She didn't know what made her say it and she blushed lightly once she had.

"Why?" James raised an eyebrow.

She looked at him "You've always been so bold and cocky and strong...It was really quit horrible seeing you there-" she gestured to the vacated bed "-not moving, looking all...I don't know. It was unnerving and I was frightened you'd still look like that."

He frowned slightly, his forehead creasing "You were actually worried about me?"

"Yeah," She nodded and then sighed "Yeah, I suppose I was."

For a second he looked like he wanted to reach out and touch her but instead he settled with a smile "Well, I'm fine."

"And I've already said I'm glad...although you had a lot of drugs inside you, that night."

"Yeah, I thought I was hallucinating." He winked and she rolled her eyes.

"Bye, bye Potter."

"See you tomorrow." He grinned, jumping back onto the bed and getting back to the Transfiguration beside him.

x

Please let me know what you think, I really appreciate it :)


	13. Transfiguration

"Ah, here's our wounded soldier." McGonagall said, a small glint in her eye as James Potter walked into Advanced Transfiguration ten minutes late, the following morning "I do hope that your injuries did not detain you from completing the work I set."

"Course not," James grinned, passing the stack of parchment over the wooden desk and winking.

"Sit down, Potter."

"With pleasure...I have missed you."

She rolled her eyes, placing his work to one side "As I was saying, while most of you may find this class diffiult, it opens a world of doors for your future..."

Lily zoned out, glancing through the corner of her eye at James, who was laughing with Sirius and Remus. He looked completely normal again, as if nothing had changed in the past month. Of course, from Lily's point of view, _everything _had changed.

He was no longer somebody she despised - how could she keep that up after the undying worry that had consumed her over the days he lay unconscious in the Hospital Wing?

He as no longer the boy she found disgusting - a beam of winter sunlight fell across his face, enhancing the cheekbones that could already cut through thin air. He stretched out a muscular arm, running a hand through his hair absently and Lily felt a strange swooping feeling in her stomach as she thought, for the first time in her entire life _I really do find this boy very attractive_.

But what was more, Remus had been right; James Potter had done something nobody would think possible - he'd changed. Behind the three teenage boys, Mary Macdonald said something and, as he laughed, Lily felt the warm buttery sensation in her stomach turn into a burning concoction of regret and jealousy.

In complete shock at this sudden change of heart, Lily shook her head quickly and turned around in time to see a very content-looking Alice Fortescue with her eyebrows raised, a smile playing on her lips.

"What?" Lily hissed.

"Nothing, I've just never seen you look at James Potter for so long without wanting to be sick."

She shrugged "Yeah, well, when somebody nearly dies it can do strange things to your opinions."

"So what do you think of him now?"

"What is this - twenty questions?"

Alice rolled her eyes "One question, actually."

"I don't know," Lily said quickly "He's not as bad as he used to be."

"He's definitely changed." Alice agreed, a small frown on her face "Much less of a-"

"Dick head." Lily finished "Yes."

Alice smiled slightly "I wonder who it's all for."

"What do you-"

"Evans?" McGonagall's voice called through the classroom "What about you?"

Lily looked at her for a moment "Sorry?"

"Career - I was under the impression that you wanted to become an Auror in your fifth year, or has that changed?"

"No, that's still...I still want to do that." She replied. From across the classroom, she could feel eyes on the back of her neck, but she did not turn around. Instead, she held Mcgonagall's steely gaze.

"I see." She turned around "And you, Miss Fortescue?"

Alice smiled "I'd like to do something along the same lines."

As McGonagall responded, Lily knocked her quill onto the floor. On her way back up from retrieving it, she lifted her head and saw James Potter's hazel eyes observing her in a most curious fashion. He looked half worried, half surprised and, as they made eye contact, he did not look away or even change his expression.

"Black?" McGonagall asked.

"Well, I'd love to answer but Lily and James are having eye-sex across the classroom and it's far too distracting - _ouch_!" He exclaimed, as James hit him around the head.

"Well, no matter what they're doing, I asked you a question and wish you to answer."

"I don't know," He winked "Something exciting."

"Maybe you could narrow that down in an essay for next lesson then, I'll look forward to it." She smiled slightly at his expression.

"Professor!" He exclaimed "You've already given us an essay in for Friday and I have twelve more in my bag!"

"Then I hope to hear that you're excelling in your other subjects then, Sirius."

James laughed as she said "I don't have you tomorrow so I'll see you on Friday with, as Mr Black has so kindly reminded me, your essays."

Groans erupted from several places as the familiar noise of chairs being scraped back across the floor filled the room. The class began to file out of the classroom but McGonagall looked up "Evans, Potter - a word, please."

Lily pulled her bag over a slim shoulder and walked across to the wooden desk as it banged against her hip lightly. James smiled at the slight worry in her eye and turned to face their Head of House.

"How are you both doing?"

"Not too bad, thanks." James frowned "Yourself?"

"No," She waved a hand absently, shaking her head "I mean _together_. Is everything okay?"

"Oh," He smiled "Much better, she can actually be in the same room as me without wanting to strangle herself - it's great!"

"Really?" McGonagall asked, an eyebrow raised.

"When he can restrain from being an arrogant idiot, yes." Lily replied.

McGonagall smiled slightly "Good, because I'm putting Davey Gudgeon back with Remus Lupin - I think he feels too intimidated by you, Potter, to be working with you."

"Why would you think that?"

"Because he told me." She said seriously, as James began to smirk. "He requested working with somebody who has never - to use his expression - 'Flattened him in Quidditch'."

"Please stop," Lily said flatly "I think his head's going to explode."

James rolled his eyes, grinning "No, you're safe. So...this means we'll be working together again, right?" He gestured bewteen the pair of them.

McGonagall nodded "Yes, and I would put him with Lily but I'm not having you and Mr Lupin working together, unfortunately."

James shoved his hands deep into his pockets and laughed "Fair enough."

"Can we go now?" Lily asked "I need to go to the Library."

James smirked as McGonagall nodded "Yes, see you Friday."

"Bye." James smiled and the pair left the classroom. "The Library, huh?"

Lily rolled her eyes "Yes."

"Would you like me to join-"

"No thank you."

They walked along the outskirts of the Transfiguration Courtyard. Every surface was covered in a thick layer of frost and a spider web of footprints spread out from the centre, dense in the middle and thinning out towards the breezy corners.

"I can't believe we finish for Christmas next week." James shook his head.

"I know - you've spent half of this term in the Hospital Wing." she said, and then smiled.

"I kind of don't want to leave, if you know what I mean."

"Yeah," She sighed, looking up at the many turrets towering over her head "I know exactly what you mean."

They came out into a crowded corridor, packed with students much smaller than themselves and bags much bigger.

"Urgh," Lily exhaled heavily at the prospect of fighting her way through the mass of rucksacks and twelve year olds.

James smiled, pulling on her wrist and flipping her onto the other side of a tapestry.

"Oh my God!" She said, realising that they had completely changed their location and were now in a deserted corridor a few minutes from the Library.

He chuckled "Well, that's the plus side of knowing somebody like me, Evans."

She shook her head, smiling "How do you do it?"

"I have a few tricks." He smiled "See you later."

"Bye," She said quietly, watching him walk away with a smile on his face.


	14. The Preference of a Lily

I'm literally in the world's best mood ever in the whole entire universe because I don't have to sit another Chemistry GCSE for 12 months! Unfortunately though, I do have a Physics Exam in the morning D:  
I hope you are all as happy as me and, in response to a question - Yes, Jily is DEFINITELY my OTP :-)

x

The Sunday before Hogwarts was due to break up for Christmas, the first real snowfall of 1977 came about. Every morning of the following week, students woke up to a fresh blanket of snow covering the grounds.

Lily Evans was cold. Her hands stung, her nose was numb and her cheeks were pink as she pushed the front doors open and walked over to the bottom of the Grand Staircase, where James Potter was stood, his hands deep inside his pockets and both shirt sleeves rolled up.

"Your uniform is despicable." She told him, as they began to walk.

He grinned, pulling off the tie that hung, unfastened, around his neck. With a small flick of the wrist, he whipped her with it and laughed.

"Potter." She said, going to grab it but missing "I'm really not in the mood."

"Oh, lighten up." He laughed "We go home in two days!"

"Yes, I know." She said, without smiling.

"You don't want to go home?" He raised an eyebrow.

"I never said that."

"Maybe not, but you're giving that impression."

She shook her head "I don't get on with my sister."

James frowned - he'd heard about Lily's family from Marlene, but never quite understood "She's a muggle, isn't she?"

"Yeah."

"Is that why?"

Lily looked at him sideways "She's jealous...I suppose."

"Ah." He said "Understandable, I suppose. Then why don't you stay here - or go to Alice's or something?"

"I want to see my Mum and Dad - it's just Petunia."

"Oh," He smiled slightly "I ate a petunia when I was seven and spent the night throwing up - never really been fond of them since." He paused "I prefer lilies."

She smiled at him "That's possibly the nicest thing you've ever said to me."

"Bollocks - I'm always nice to you." He grinned proudly "I wrote you a poem in fourth year!"

She laughed out loud and winced "I'd blocked that out."

"Roses are red,  
So is your head,  
I'd kiss your friend Snape,  
If you'd get in my bed." He recited, laughing. "The best bit was - I'd lost my virginity about a week before I wrote that and I was acting like some kind of pimp."

"You lost your virginity t the age of fourteen?"

"Fifteen." He correcte "Dorcas Meadows."

Lily shook her head "Merlin, it took me forever."

"So that was your fist time?" He asked, eyebrows raised "I thought so but..." He trailed off and ran a hand through the mess of raven hair on top of his head.

"But what?"

"Well firstly, look at yourself - you're gorgeous, Evans. I'm mightily surprised you managed to keep it that long."

She shook her head, a small smile on her lips "Thanks, I suppose."

"You're welcome."

"Secondly?"

He smiled slightly, stopping to itch the back of his calf with the toe of his trainer before saying simply "You were good."

She looked at him for a moment "What?"

He laughed softly "Good - I would say in bed, but it was up against a bookcase and then on a table so it doesn't really apply."

"I - I was - what do you -"

"It's the best sex I've ever had." He stated honestly "And I've had sex with an impressive number of girls."

She rubbed her forehead "Is that a compliment?"

He laughed "It's a fact."

"Well thank you, I suppose...again." She smiled "It wasn't exactly a horrible performance on your behalf, either."

He grinned "Oh, I know. Although I never really believed I'd ever hear you compliment me on anything - least of all that."

"Me neither." She said, and then looked at him and laughed.

They walked comfortably for a while until the castle was very dark, any light from the moon blocked by thick clouds.

"I like snow." James said quietly, coming to a stop and looking out of a window. They were very high up and a druaght blew up and down the corridor.

"Me too." She said, shiverring slightly.

James shrugged off the grey jacket he had on over his school shirt and passed it to her "Put this on."

She looked at it for a second or two and then began to protest "I'm fine-"

"Evans, just put it on - you're cold."

She did as he said, feeling the weight of the thick material drop onto her shoulders. It was warm and soft and, as they walked and she breathed in, she inhaled the familiar smell of bonfires that she'd grown slightly accustomed to over the past few months. The realisation made her wince as she followed James down a corridor.

A noise from a cupboard interrupted her trail of thought. They both stopped and took several steps backwards, before glancing at one another. From behind the wooden door came a second sound very similar to the first, only slightly lower in pitch.

James frowned, pulling out his wand and flicking it slightly, causing the lock to release with a small snap. Using his other hand, he reached and pulled the door, revealing two fourth years in a very compromising position.

The girl, her blue and bronze tie askew, jumped up and fixed her skirt. The boy, a small smile on his face, glanced down at his un-tucked shirt and wiped his mouth.

"Erm.." He said slowly "We were just-"

"I have a fairly good idea of what you were doing." Lily said "Get to your common room."

He grinned gratefully, a pink tinge creeping up his neck as he jogged away "Thanks."

"Go on," James inclined his head and the girl blushed bright, beetroot red.

"Okay."

"And do try and hide it better, next time." Lily called after her quickly retreating silhouette.

"I'm impressed, Evans." James said, smirking.

"Well, I'd be a bit of a hypocrite, telling them not to do it." She bit her lip, smiling.

James grinned "Yeah, you would."

Lily laughed and, after a few seconds of watching her, James joined in. Somewhere inside, Lily thought it strange to feel such a swooping happiness in the presence of a person she had once despised. However, that place was located in a deep, dark corner of her brain and wasn't worrying her as she leant against a bannister and hiccuped slightly.

That was, until they both looked up. Hazel met emerald and suddenly, Lily was concerned. Not because she was laughing, not because she was happy, not even because she was having what could be described as a dangerously good time with the boy beside her. No, Lily was concerned because all she wanted to do, at that moment, was to feel him against her. She wanted him to bite her neck, kiss her stomach - she wanted him to do everything he had done on that October evening when she had given in for the first time in her life. Lily Evans was concerned because she wanted James Potter.

He moved towards her, instinctively, the ghost of a smile still on his face. The silence between them rang through the empty corridor, the darkness was a vacuum - trapping and containing them, unwilling to let the pair leave.

"We should go." James said quietly, not moving.

"Yeah." Lily said, wanting to do anything but.

He inched forwards automatically, looking down so that their lips were millimetres apart.

"Do you want to?" He whispered, and Lily wasn't sure whether he was referring to leaving the secluded spot or what they were about to do.

"I don't know." She breathed, virtually into his mouth, sending a wave of goosebumps down his body.

Suddenly, a door banged shut, forcing the pair back into reality. Lily jumped and James stepped backwards quickly, ensuring that he was as far away from her as the corridor would permit.

Peeves flew overhead, cackling "Oooh, did I interrupt something?"

"Piss off, Peeves." James practically growled, and the Poltergeist flew off, humming a few bars of a crude song.

The walk back up to the Common Room was short but silent.

"Mistletoe." Lily muttered, her voice strained.

The Portrait swung open and they climbed through, into the circular room.

They turned to look at each other once more, before nodding and going their separate ways.

x

As the snow was so thick, all students who were supposed to be doing subjects that required the use of the grounds were trapped inside the castle, making the corridors hell - even when you knew as many short cuts as the Marauders.

"Slow down!" Panted Peter, attempting to consume the last of his bacon sandwich.

Remus laughed "Oh, come on, Wormtail!"

Sirius paused for a moment, before leaning down and snatching the food away, stuffing it into his mouth.

"Padfoot!" The blonde, chubby boy exclaimed "That was mine!"

"No shit," Sirius responded, swallowing the entire thing in one gulp "It's not slowing you down any more, is it?"

Peter muttered something and Sirius walked to join James.

"Sup?"

"Nothing." James responded, looking ahead.

"Liar."

James glanced at his best friend - the one person to whom, before this year, he had told everything. "What? I'm fine."

"Clearly not." Sirius said, but did not push the matter. "Hey - guess what?"

"What?"

"I got a my first Christmas present last night."

"What was it?"

He grinned "Let's just say, I think Marlene McKinnon might miss me after all."

"Why, what did she give you?" James asked absently.

"Fucking hell, James," Sirius stared "Has it really been that long since you last had sex that you can't even get my innuendos any more?"

"Oh," James smiled "I get you."

Sirius shook his head in dismay as they approached the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom.

James walked in and sat down, unusually early. After a few minutes, Lily, Alice and Marlene walked in, taking their own seats.

"Morning." Lily said politely, sitting down.

"Yeah - Hi." James responded, opening his book.

Slinkslope arrived next with a few Ravenclaws, waving his wand and saying "No need for books today - we're having a Practical lesson!"

Sighing, James kicked the textbook back into his open bag under the desk and stood up. Lily got out her wand, ten and a quarter inches of swishy Willow, and looked expectantly at the Professor.

"Potronus Charms," He spoke smoothly "Have a simple enough theory but can be extremely difficult to pull off correctly." The class listened intently as he continued "A Corporeal Patronus is literally an imprint of your soul and can protect you from the likes of Dementors. They act as a guardian and take the form of a kind of creature - for example, my Patronus is a Ferret." He glanced around before continuing "Many Wizards have to make do with a Patronus that simply takes the form of a silvery mist - it does the job, but will never be quite as strong. It will take weeks of practice to perfect so do not lose your patience. Now, does anybody know how to conjure a Patronus?"

Lily raised her hand "The incantation is _Expecto Patronum_. It literally translates to_ I await a guardian._"

"Good - ten points to Gryffindor. However, the incantation will not work alone - and this is where it gets tricky - for a full fledged Patronus to emerge you need to think of the happiest memory you can muster whilst saying the incantation. and by happy, I do not just mean something that made you smile - I need ecstasy!" He grinned "So, have a go!"

Lily frowned, turning to Alice as Marlene closed her eyes and grinned.

"What are you thinking of?"

Alice shook her head, her eyes wondering to the back of Frank Longbottom's hair "No idea."

Shrugging, Lily closed her eyes, seeing herself at the age of eight, baking with her Mother and sister. "Expecto Patronum!"

She looked up expectantly but saw nothing - not even a glimpse of silver. Slightly put out, she tried again. And again. And again. And again.

Half an hour later, still nothing.

"Sir!" James shouted, grinning "Look!"  
The class turned around to see wispy silver streaks erupting out of the end of his wand.

"Excellent!" Slinkslope shouted, gesturing wildly "It's definitely a start!"

James let his wand drop, still smiling as the Professor walked to the front "Right - for homework - practice!"

Lily shoved her wand back inside her robe and trailed out of the classroom, only half listening to the conversation Alice and Marlene were having about their 'happy thoughts'.  
x  
Lily dunked her head under the water in the Head's Bathroom and opened her eyes, the whole world filling with a shimmering, glinting light as she waited for her hair to rinse. After a few seconds of this, she emerged and climbed out of the bath, wrapping a towel around herself and leaving her hair to drip onto the floor.

She glanced at her reflection in the mirror and observed herself for a moment. She supposed, really, that she was lucky. Her skin was blemish-free, her nose delicate and her eyelashes thick. She was slightly shorter than average, making her chest seem slightly bigger than it really was. Her wet hair was dark but still red in the light and she was slim, with good legs and size five feet.

Before she had any idea what was happening, the door swung open and James Potter emerged.

"Potter!" She shouted, stepping out from behind the mirror and staring "What are you doing?"

James' eyes widened for a moment and then traced over her body "Evans." He looked at her "It didn't say anybody was in here."

"Well, it should have done-"

"It isn't my fault."

"I never said it was." She replied.

"You were about to."

"No I was not."

"Fine," He shrugged "Would you like me to leave?"

"Well I'm clearly not ready yet." She answered, her voice echoing around the arced ceiling as she walked towards him.

"Right then," He said, not taking his eyes from hers

"Okay." she said quietly, now only a metre away.

"About last night-" He started

"It was stupid." She said quickly.

"Yeah - yeah, it was." He nodded and then turned to leave "Are we okay?"

"Yes, of course."

"Good." He turned away and his fingers were on the door handle when she said the word that made his heart stop.

"James."

Every muscle in his body seemed to freeze at the use of his first name. Somehow, he span around and stared at her, seeing the hungry look in her eyes for the second time in his life. He dropped the bag that was on his shoulder and reached out to her, pushing her roughly against the cold brick wall and crashing his lips down onto hers.

She kissed him back with twice as much force, his lips burning. Hands shaking from all the adrenaline, she hastily unfastened his shirt as he ripped the towel from her body. They moved backwards, still kissing whilst simultaneously taking off the rest of James' uniform.  
Just as the final piece of clothing dropped onto the floor, the pair tipped over the edge, plunging into the still filled and bubbling bath without letting each other go for a second.

Spitting the warm water out, James looked Lily steadily in the eye, panting slightly "Evans-"

But he couldn't finish, because her mouth was once again on his.

x

I hope you like it! Please review :)


	15. New Year's Eve

_What had she done?_

The same thought plagued her from the moment she woke up on the cool floor of the Head's Bathroom at four am the following morning, covered by nothing but James Potter's school shirt to the second that Petunia Evans said those dreaded words around the dinner table on the thirtieth of December.

"I'm getting married."

"_What_?" Lily's eyes flew open, staring at the two total opposites sat across the table. Vernon was huge, with thick, straw coloured hair and several layers of what Lily could only suppose was pure _fat_ on the back on his neck.

"We're getting married in July."

Lily laughed out loud "You're marrying _that_?" She waved towards Vernon with her fork.

"You know," Petunia's voice shook furiously "I put up with your weird, _abnormal _ ways and you can't eve be happy for me once-"

"Oh, believe me, I will be absolutely overjoyed to be rid of you forever."

"Petunia-" Mrs Evans started, regaining her voice "I don't think Lily meant-"

"Oh she knew exactly what she meant!" Petunia shrieked "And she will not be getting an invite if she continues to act so disrespectfully towards my-"

"_Disrespectfully?" _Lily laughed incredulously "_You_, the girl who was - sorry, _is_ - so jealous of me that you make a point of telling everybody that I'm a freak? _You_ are calling _me_ disresepcful? You've got some cheek, Petunia -"

"Lily, please." Mr Evans said softly, notes of both impatience and hurt ringing in his voice "Petunia, are you sure? It's all very fast you've only been together a few months - you only moved in together three weeks ago - and you're very young, still-"

"Not to mention the quality of the moron you've settled for." Lily snapped, gesturing towards Vernon, who was resembling a kind of raddish, and stomping out of the room.

It took several minutes of squeezing her eyes tightly shut and taking long deep breaths for Lily's rage to lift slightly, giving her the ability to see and think once again.

It took several more minutes for her to find enough self control to stand up from her floor and sit on her bed followed by several more after that for her to open the door.

Predictably, her mother was stood there. Her eyes were slightly bloodshot and her hand was pressed tightly against her mouth.

"I'm not sorry." Lily said stonily, her voice steady "After years of being addressed as a 'Freak', I'm not going to stand for her calling me _disrespectful_. She has _no _right."

"I know." Mrs Evans said, pulling her daughter towards her and cradling her "I know, sweetheart." Her voice was thick as she said "You're growing up so fast."

Lily squeezed her mother and pulled away "I'm sorry that I upset _you_. You and Dad, I mean."

"I know, baby." Her Mother brushed a finger across Lily's cheek and smiled. "The Dursley's have invited us round tomorrow evening - with it being New Year's Eve, and all-"

"I'm not going." Lily said quickly.

"I don't blame you." She replied "But unfortunately, we have to. Will you be okay here, by yourself?"

Lily nodded "I'll be fine."

"Good." she nodded.

"You could invite Marlene and Alice round, if you wanted?"

Lily shook her head "Marlene's in Vermont and Alice is at a family party...I think I'll go to bed now, Mum."

Mrs Evans reached over and kissed Lily on the forehead "Okay sweetheart; night night, I love you."

"I love you too." Lily said and, despite the large amount of stress she'd caused the woman over the years by arguing with Petunia, she really, honestly meant it.

x

The following day, Lily finished all of her homework - only struggling slightly on Transfiguration and, irritatingly, the Patronus Charm.

At quarter to eight, barely fifteen minutes before she'd said Happy New Year to her parents and curled up on the sofa with a thick book, there were two quick knocks on the front door.

Sighing and wondering who it could possibly be, she stood up and opened the door. Stood there was the person she least expected, and certainly least _wanted _to see in the whole entire world.

Hands in pockets, snow falling into his jet black hair and a casual smirk on his face, stood James Potter.

"What are _you_ doing here?" She hissed.

"Not going to invite me in?" His eyes traced over her attire - red checked pyjama pants and a white vest top "Or am I interrupting a wild party?"

She pulled him through the door, slamming it shut and staring as he ran a hand through his hair, taking in the living room. Suddenly, Lily felt very self concious - the Evans' weren't exactly poor but, as far as she'd heard, the Potter's were one of the richest Wizarding families alive.

"What?" He asked.

"_Why_ are you here?"

"Look," He said honestly, taking off his jacket and dropping it over one of the sofas, seeming totally at home "Last time we had sex it was awkward for a rather long time and I can't do that again."

Lily stared, slightly shocked that he was talking about it so easily "And?"

"So I'm here to take you out - not on a date," He grinned as she opened her mouth to protest "Just as friends."

"I'm busy."

He glanced at the open book behind her, lying on the coffee table and raised an eyebrow.

Lily shrugged "I don't think-"

He took her shoulders and faced her towards the stairs, whispering in her ear "Wear something pretty."

x

Half an hour later, Lily walked down the stairs wearing black tights and a short, dark purple dress with a black cardigan. James gave a low whistle and held the door open, smiling.

"I don't know why I'm agreeing to this." She shook her head, causing her crimson hair to swing from side to side.

James grinned "Because, deep down, you know that I'm right."

"About what, exactly?"

"Everything." He responded, shrugging on his jacket before reaching out and spinning her into nothingness.

The first thing Lily could make out, after the uncomfortable apparition, was a lot of snow. And then, dauntingly, the outline of a very large house.

"Where are-"

"A New Year's party." He said absently, beginning to walk towards the door.

"Potter!" Lily hissed, beginning to recognise the unmistakable signs of magic dotted around - no cars, but a larger than average broomshed, a water fountain still functioning despite the icy weather and the small prints that could only belong to a house-elf leading to the building.

"What?" He asked, innocently.

"You've done this on purpose." She stated.

He smiled, walking towards her "Maybe a little - but I needed a date and you're the only one I could think of."

Lily scoffed.

"What?"

"Of all the girls in our school that would give their right leg to be here with you, _I'm_ the only one you-"

"Fine," He shrugged "You're the only one I wanted here."

She shook her head in exasperation but followed him non-the-less. James walked straight the past door and slipped down a narrow stone path, overlooked by the snow-covered leaves of many trees.

"Where are we going?"

"Round the back." He replied, emerging in a dark, snowy garden and opening the back door. They were in a small kitchen, furnished with various different types of expensive-looking wood. James opened a door leading away from the room that revealed a corridor. He gestured for her to follow and she trailed behind him slightly, gaping at the expensive art work that covered the deep red walls.

James lead her up an exquisite staircase, along two more, slightly shorter corridors and then opened the door into a room that made Lily's mouth literally fall open.

"_Who _lives here?" She breathed, taking in everything from the hundreds of people to the magnificent dresses to the tuxedos to the large grand piano that was magically twinkling away a melody completely by itself to the marble floor to the huge window taking up the whole length of the room, looking out over the breathtaking grounds.

"Some people I know," James muttered, smiling at a witch in the crowd.

"I'm not even wearing heels!" Lily exclaimed, gesturing to the simple black pumps on her feet.

"And yet you still manage to look more attractive than all the women here." He said quietly.

Lily barely heard him and, awestruck, she allowed him to take her hand and pull her over to a Wizard wearing a top-hat and a shimmering red rose in his buttonhole.

"James!" The man grinned, holding out his hand "How are you? Oh, and who's this little beauty?"

James grinned "Good thanks - you? And this is Lily Evans, my date."

Lily smiled at the man in front of her, his face flushed with enthusiasm.

"Hello," She shook his hand.

"Good catch there, Son. And how's Sirius? I thought i might see him around, he's normally at yours over Christmas-"

"He came round for a week but he and Remus went to Peter's after Boxing Day."

"Ah," The man smiled, sipping his champagne "Anyway, I won't keep you - say Hello to Sirius for me, won't you?"

"Course," James smiled and turned away as Lily turned to face him "Mum's cousin - used to work in my Dad's department."

They engaged in several more conversations in the next half an hour, before James took her hand once more and lead her towards the door.

"Where are we going?"

He grinned "Why, are you enjoying yourself after all?"

She looked at him sarcastically and said nothing.

He winked "I just had to make an appearance - now I can actually take you out."

She shrugged and followed him back through the house into the kitchen, where he took her hand and pulled her once more into the suffocating experience that was apparition.

They appeared on a street corner, Lily losing her balance slightly. James steadied her with two strong arms, smiled and then let them drop.

Silently, she followed him down several unfamiliar streets until they ended up at a small bar with a red, glowing sign outside. He held out the door and lead her into a small, packed bar with a laminate dance floor in the corner and a wild spectrum of bright lights zooming around the room.

"And where are we now?"

"The place that does the best cocktails in the country."

"Really?"

"Not bad at all - for muggles, that is." He grinned.

"You'd be surprised what us muggles can do." She responded, a smile in her voice.

"Found it when I was fifteen."

"You got in here when you were fifteen?" Lily asked, slightly shocked.

He nodded.

"And what are we doing here?"

"First of all you're going to sit and have a drink, he gestured to two vacated bar stools and pulled her down.

"Then what?"

"Then we're going to dance." He grinned.

"Can't dance." She shook her head as he waved the barman down.

"We'll see." He smiled, ordering the drinks.

x

"Potter" She squealed, as he span her around.

"What?" He grinned back "Told you I could dance!"

"One of your many talents."

"Oh, aye?" He winked and she laughed.

"Wasn't referring to that, actually."

"Good at it though, aren't I?"

"Yeah." She agreed, her face seriously "You really are."

He smirked and pulled her towards him, muttering in her ear "Are you drunk, by any chance, Evans?"

"Maybe slightly." She laughed and the music slowed down into a soft, rhythmic tune that she recognised from somewhere.

"What's this?"

"Dunno," James shrugged, holding her hip with one hand, and spinning her around with the other.

She turned three hundred and sixty degrees, a smile on her face as she landed with one hand on his chest, her eyes animated. He looked down at her, cheeks slightly flushed and emerald eyes glimmering. James had seen various men look at her, before turning away, disheartened, when they realised she was with someone bigger than themselves. James had noticed several women watching her enviously, looking at her hair, her chest, her legs and wishing they looked like her. James noticed all of this. He also noticed how Lily remained blissfully oblivious to it, thinking herself as plain and ordinary and in the same league as the rest of the women around.

"You're gorgeous, do you know that?"

She continued to smile, her lips parted slightly "Thank you, Potter. I suppose you're not too bad yourself."

"Oh, I know that," He winked at her "Ready to go?"

"Where?"

"You'll see." He smiled, before pulling her into another, more bearable due to the amount of alcohol in her system, apparition.

They landed steadily, as he kept hold of her tightly, on a very high bridge in central London, over the Thames.

From their position, they could see Big Ben and the houses of Parliament. James lead her over to the side of the bridge, standing to the side of her. Somewhere, a swing band were playing and Lily looked up to see that the clouds had parted, revealing icy stars above their heads.

"I'm cold." She said, a playful smile on her features as she turned to look at him.

"Want my jacket?" He asked.

"No, then you'll be cold." She responded, shaking her head.

"True." He smiled, moving to stand close behind her. He unzipped his jacket and wrapped his arms around her waist so that his body heat transferred to her "Better?"

Goosebumps that had nothing to do with the cold erupted down her body at the feel of his breath on her neck.

"Much." She said quietly.

"Good," He muttered "It's one minute to midnight."

"Already?" She raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah," He laughed slightly as, sure enough, the countdown around them began.

"10...9...8...7...6...5...4.."

James leant forward "Three." He breathed.

"Two." She muttered.

"One." He breathed.

As the clock struck midnight, cried of 'Happy New Year' welcomed in the first seconds of 1978. Fireworks exploded above their heads, coloured bright white, dazzling red and blinding blue as the Swing Band began to play 'Auld Land Syne'.

Lily turned around, smiling widely. They were centimetres apart and her eyes were twinkling "Thank you - This has been, it's been amazing."

He grinned back "Glad you came out?"

"Definitely." She smiled, before reaching up and kissing him lightly on the lips "Happy New Year, James Potter."

x

The pair of seventeen year olds were sat at the bar of the Leaky Cauldron, laughing.

"I hate it!"

"Seriously, _how_?" He asked, finishing his drink.

"It's horrible!" She replied "No control whatsoever."

"Ah, so that's the problem?" he chuckled "You're such a control freak that-"

"I am _not_ a control freak!"

He raised an eyebrow and she laughed.

"Maybe a little."

"On day, I'll take you flying Evans, and you'll get it."

"I doubt that very much."

"You will." He insisted, laughing again "It's amazing - especially when you're on a broom with _me_."

"Who taught you?" She asked, slightly puzzled.

"Sorry?"

"To ride a broom - who taught you?"

"Nobody." He frowned "Myself, I suppose."

"No chance." She shook her head.

"Yes I did!"

"Nope. You did _not _teach yourself to fly the way you can - that's impossible!"

"No it isn't." He grinned "Was that a compliment?"

"Hmm." she smiled "Maybe."

"Who'd of thought it?" Tom, the barman, smiled and looked at the pair "I've heard that you two hate each other."

"He's not so bad." Lily said, glancing sideways at the boy beside her.

"Yeah, well I wish the same could be said for her..." He winced "_Nightmare_, Tom - honestly."

Tom laughed, watching as Lily hit James lightly on the arm.

He smiled at her touch, before glancing at his watch "It's almost one o'clock, Lily - won't your Mum and Dad be back soon?"

"They'll be out until three - Petunia won't let them leave any earlier."

"Still, you should probably get home."

She nodded, finishing her drink and placing the empty glass on the counter "Bye, Tom!"

The pair walked outside and James pulled her towards his body, once more appearing in a place completely different to the on they had just vacated.

"You okay?" He asked, an she opened the door.

"I'm great," She smiled "I've had a brilliant time - thank you."

He smiled and followed her inside when she held the door open "You're welcome - I've also had a very good night."

"Oh, I am glad to hear it." She smiled, walking through the living room and into the kitchen "Drink?"

"Tea, please." He said, sitting on the sofa.

"Okay."

She waved her wand and various muggle utilities sprang to life. Lily watched the tea make itself with a content look on her face.

"You look strange." James craned his neck around the door and frowned.

"I feel strange."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah - happy, but strange." she said, walking into the living room and sitting beside him on the sofa.

"Oh." He shrugged and then smiled "Can I ask you something?"

"Shoot."

"I was the first person you've ever had sex with, yes?"

"Yeah."

"What about your first kiss?"

"Severus Snape." She said.

James grimaced painfully "Fucking hell - I don't even want to know how that came about."

She laughed "I was thirteen and he - he said that he'd never kissed anyone and I said me neither but he misunderstood and thought I was asking him to - well, you get my drift."

James shook his head "I said I didn't want to know."

She laughed "Oh well. What about you?"

He shrugged "Can't remember her name. I was eleven and she was a Ravenclaw in second year, I think - blonde."

"So she left last year?"

He shrugged "Don't know."

Lily laughed "And so it began."

He hit her with a cushion "I'm not that bad!"

"Yes, you are."

"No I'm not - Since March, you're the only girl I've even _kissed_."

"Impressive, Potter." She smiled.

"Can I ask you something else?"

"What?"

"Do you have a bathroom?"

"No, muggles go outside."

He stared at her and she laughed.

"I'm joking, come on - I'll show you."

She lead him up the stairs, gestured towards the cream bathroom and slipped inside her bedroom, looking at her reflection. There was something different, something more relaxed in the way she held herself. Shrugging, she took off her clothes and slipped into the pyjamas she's had on many hours ago. They were soft and warm against her skin and she wiped off her make-up quickly, pulling her long hair over one shoulder.

There was a small knock on the door and Lily looked up "Yes?"

"Are you getting changed?"

"No."

"Shame." James said, opening the door, smirking. He looked around her smaller-than-average bedroom, taking in the flowers painted on the wall by the window, the dressing table, the wooden wardrobes, the window with the moving photographs on the sill.

He sat on her bed, testing it for softness and then leaned back on the pillows "Comfy."

"Yes," she said, sitting at the foot "Move, please."

"No, just come up here."

"No!"

"Yes," He laughed, budging over to the wall "See?"

Lily rolled her eyes but obliged, lying beside him. A light shadow fell across his face, dancing on the edge of his jaw. He turned to look at her, his hazel eyes steady.

"You okay?"

"Yeah." She smiled, curling up slightly and yawning.

"Tired?"

"We don't all run around Hogwarts disguised as animals until six in the morning, you know.

"Really?" He feigned surprise "I was under the impression that you do."

She rolled her eyes and he took a hand from behind his head, pulling her towards his chest with one arm. Despite herself, Lily closed her eyes and let him, inhaling the smell of firewood and bonfires that she'd really come to be very fond of, before drifting off into a very comfortable and blissful sleep - the warming heat of the seventeen year old beside her sending a fresh wave of goosebumps down her body.

x

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	16. Train Ride

"Evans."

"Potter."

The exchange was familiar. The situation was not.

Lily did not look up from her book, merely turned the page. James leant against the doorframe of the carriage with a smile on his face.

"Were you uspet?"

"Sorry?"

"When you woke up - and I wasn't there. Because I heard your parents come home and thought it was best if-"

"You said it wasn't a date." She paused "Why would I be upset? Besides, I thought as much."

He grinned, running a hand through his hair "There it is."

"What?"

"The sarcasm that has so far neglected to make an appearance. It's nice when it doesn't bother."

"Hypocrite." She looked up, caught his eye and smiled "Are we agreed that whatever _that_ was - in the Library then in the Bathroom - it shouldn't-"

"Happen again." He crossed his arms "Thought you might say that. Although, I do have a question."

"What's your question?"

"You said it shouldn't happen again."

"Correct."

"That gives me the impression that you want it to happen again."

She looked at him for a moment and shook her head "No."

"Yeah, surprisingly, I don't quite believe that."

"And why not?"

He smiled "Because when you're drunk - you let down the wall that tells you that you're too good for me or whatever and it's like you can just go with your instincts." He shrugged "And that's nice - seeing you like that."

"I do not-" She started, and then frowned "Sorry - what did you just say?"

"It's nice seeing you act impulsively - rather than with your guard up."

"Before that."

"That you let down the wall that makes you think you're too good for me or something, I don't know what it is I -"

"Potter." She stood up quickly and walked over to him, a deeply concerned look on her delicate face.

"What?"

She shook her head incredulously "Is that what you think?"

"Sorry?"

"That you - that you presume that - you think that I don't think you're good enough?"

He shrugged slightly "You've always called me arrogant and conceited-"

"Because you were."

"So I just presumed that-"

"Don't." she shook her head, still frowning "Just don't. Because it isn't - I don't...think that. Okay?"

He shrugged "Whatever. Fine."

"Good."

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah," she nodded, but her eyes deceived her.

"Evans, what's-"

"Prongs!" A loud shout echoed from the doorway and Sirius threw his arms around James' back.

Behind them, Marlene walked in and grinned "Alright Lil?" She winked "What's going on here then, eh?"

Lily rolled her eyes and reached for the dark haired girl who laughed, hugging her friend back.

"I've missed you." Lily said "How was Vermont?"

"Not bad." She grinned, and Lily knew that this meant she'd had a brilliant time.

"Good."

"Yeah - I spent New Year with a load of American Wizards who go to some foreign school or another - let's face it, their education wasn't what I was interested in."

Lily laughed and, for about the fifteen hunderedth time she felt a pang of guilt and regret that she hadn't told her friends about James.

"Where's Alice?" Marlene asked, throwing Sirius a dirty look as he pulled James across the compartment, banging into her.

"No idea."

"I saw her going into a compartment with Frank Longbottom - maybe you've been ditched." An amused voice said from the doorway, and the group turned to see a smirking Remus Lupin. His face was relaxed and he smiled easily, dropping onto one of the padded seats with a soft _thump_.

"Where's Peter?" James asked, grinning as he emerged from under Sirius.

Remus pulled out a copy of the Daily Prophet and shrugged "Lost, most likely."

Sirius laughed, reaching out to snatch the paper from his friend's hand.

"What did you give him for breakfast this morning?" James asked Remus, watching Sirius incredulously.

"_I _didn't give him anything this morning - he didn't stay at my house."

"Then where-" James started, but spotted the smirk on Marlene's face. "Oh - that good eh, Sirius?"

"Better than what you've been getting recently - mind you, isn't hard."

"I'm _more _than happy with what I'm getting at the minute, thank you." He replied smoothly.

"You aren't getting _anything_."

"Okay." James said, taking the paper from Sirius who was frowning.

Across the compartment, Remus lifted his head to meet Lily's gaze, a small smile on his lips with the slightest raise of an eyebrow "And how was _your_ New Year?"

"Not bad." She replied, holding his gaze and giving nothing away in her expression "Not bad at all."

"What did you do?"

"I went out."

"Oh yeah?"

"Where?" Marlene asked, looking slightly shocked at this news "Were there boys there?"

"I went to a few places, actually." She shrugged, pausing for a second before saying "Yeah, one or two."

"Attractive?"

"I've seen worse."

"Kiss anyone?"

Lily wasn't sure what to say but luckily, nothing was required. The compartment door slid open, revealing the chubby, panting figure of Peter Pettigrew.

"What happened to _you_?" Sirius asked, crinkling his nose.

"I couldn't find you because Remus left to talk to that trolley woman and-"

"Oh aye?" Sirius waggled his eyebrows at Remus, who stuck up his middle finger in response.

"-And then someone brought a - a - one of those frog things-"

"A toad?"

"-Massive toad that chased me up the corridor!"

Sirius howled laughing as James pulled Peter inside, smirking slightly himself.

"Huge toad." Peter repeated, letting out a deep breath.

The rest of the train ride few by relatively smoothly, the only interruption being Alice who walked in looking incredibly happy a few hours later.

Eventually, they pulled up to the snow covered village of Hogsmeade and began to disembark from the compartment. The wind was harsh and the ice slippery, so it wasn't really surprising when one of Lily's feet went one way and the other stayed put.

James caught her waist, before standing her up and smiling "You're welcome."

"Thanks." She said, without meeting his gaze.

"Seen worse then, have you?" He asked, clearly amused as they began to ascend towards the carriages.

"Yeah I suppose so."

"Kissed any better?" His voice was quiet but even through the darkness she could see the smirk on his lips.

"I'm not sure, Potter."

"Shagged any better?"

Lily gave him a filthy look "Shut up before somebody hears you."

He chuckled, jumping onto a carriage "Just kidding...see you later, Evans."

Lily climbed into the carriage behind, finding herself next to Frank Longbottom.

"Good Christmas?" He asked, tying a shoe lace.

"Not bad - you?"

"Great - can I ask you something?"

"Go for it."

"Do you think she likes me?"

Lily was caught off guard, presuming he was about to ask something about the Prefect rota. "Sorry?"

"Alice." He muttered "Have I got a chance?"

"Were you with her this morning?"

"Yes."

"Then definitely."

"Why?"

"She didn't stop smiling once during the time she spent with us."

He grinned, blushing ever so slightly "Good - because I like her."

"I know you do."

"Do you think I should ask her out?"

"Yes." Lily smiled "I do."

"My Mum really likes her - y'know. She's never taken kindly to any other girl I've introduced but we saw her in Diagon Alley last September and she hasn't stopped talking about her since."

Lily laughed "You really _do_ like her, don't you?"

"Yeah," He smiled "And I still would even if my Mum didn't - I'm a firm believer that if someone means a lot to you and you genuinely like them then nothing should stop you from being with them."

Lily thought for a moment "Okay then - can I ask you something?"

"Shoot."

"What if the reason you shouldn't be with someone was in your head - say, you swore to yourself that you'd never like them but then they changed and now you think you _could_ like them but because you sore to yourself you shouldn't then-"

"I think that you should go you with him."

"Who?"

Frank smiled, standing up as the carriage pulled to a stop "James Potter, of course."

x

Okay I'm sorry it's taken so long but yeah I haven't actually been able to come up with anything decent...I'll make sure I do another one sooner though this time :-)

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	17. Michael McCartney

James Potter was a lot of things, in the eyes of many people.

To Sirius Black, he was a best friend, an equal - somebody on the same wavelength. To Remus Lupin, he was, too, a best friend. Perhaps an exasperation at times, but often the only Marauder with whom an intelligent conversation could be held. To Peter Pettigrew, he was also a best friend, an inspiration, an idol and a constant source of jealousy.

To his parents, he was a smart, courageous and handsome young man who often seemed to represent all that was good with the world. To say they were proud of the child they had raised would be a gross understatement.

To his Proffessors, he seemed both bright and mischeivous with a sharp wit and a knack for getting himself out of trouble. They all knew he'd go on to do heroic things with his life; they just hoped that, one day, he wouldn't get himself in _too_ deep.

To the female population of Hogwarts he was perfect - a tanned, toned body; perfectly messy, jet black hair and the Captain of, arguably, _the_ best Gryffindor Quidditch team the school had ever seen. Girls of all ages, shapes and sizes fantasised over James Potter despite the fact that, deep down, _all_ of them knew it was no use - his heart had been stolen by the only girl on whom his wink and flirtatious manner had never worked.

In the eyes of Lily Evans, James Potter had gone from being an irritating fellow first year, to _the_ most annoying person she'd ever clapped eyes on, to the bane of her existence, to the Head Boy, to the seventeen year old to whom she'd lost her virginity.

However, as the wet, grey and depressing month of January came to and end, James Potter began to really confuse Lily Evans. He spoke to her as if she was a friend or acquaintance and did not flirt at all. He smiled at her politely, answered her questions with the lowest amount of sarcasm he could muster and seemed to be around a lot less than he usually was.

Whenever she would see him in the corridors or catch a rare glimpse of him walking across the Common Room, her stomach would twist in a guilty sort of way, as if she'd done something wrong. Obviously, this was a ludicrous idea - she'd barely spoken to him! But still...it was unpleasant for her all the same.

x

"Lily Evans?"

Lily turned away from the bookshelf to face a tall sixth year Prefect that she vaguely recognised.

"Yes?"

"Hi - I'm Michael McCartney."

"Hello." She smiled slightly, confused.

He tilted his head to the side and frowned as he looked outside at the dreary weather "Isn't it your birthday today?"

Lily raised an eyebrow "It is, as it happens."

"It must be a terrible month to have your birthday. Mine's in September so there's none of this," He waved outside "It's awful unless you're a Quidditch player and you enjoy all the mud...although I'm sure I'd remember seeing you out there and I never have, I don't think."

Lily laughed, despite herself "Oh, really?"

"Yeah." He grinned.

"You and right, though - about the month. The best part of my birthday is the fact that it's nearly the end of the month."

He laughed and rocked backwards on his heels, hands in the pockets of his Ravenclaw robes.

"Was there anything that you wanted, Michael?"

"Yes, actually...I wanted a favour."

"And what would that favour be?"

"A date - Hogsmeade, next Saturday?"

"Actually I have a lot of Head stuff-"

"You're an excellent Head Girl, Lily." He smiled "Surely you can spare me an afternoon?"

"Fine." She smiled, feeling irrationally giddy as he smiled back and strolled away, both his hands still deep in their pockets.

x

"_What_?" Marlene frowned, tying up her hair.

"What?"

"Well, you know - _Potter_."

"What about him?" Lily looked down at her hands and then back up at her two best friends, who were both sat on Alice's bed opposite Lily's.

"Well, you just seem to be getting on and we thought-"

"We thought you'd be shagging by now." Marlene stated.

A lot can change in a moment and it was the following few seconds that forced Lily into realising this. One moment, she was telling her friends about a date and the next her darkest secret was unravelling faster than a ball of wool with a newborn kitten.

Shocked by the statement, Lily faltered for a moment, itched her nose and then blinked. In the three seconds it took for her to do these things, Marlene had noticed.

"What?" She asked, puzzled.

"Nothing - what?" Lily responded, slightly to quickly.

The dark haired girl watched Lily with a pair of inquisitive eyes that slowly began to widen until eventually, they were practically out of their sockets "Oh. My. God!"

Lily bit her thumb nail and Marlene squealed as Alice looked on, confused.

"What are you-"

"Our Head Girl seems to have found a certain..._use_ for her colleague."

"James?" she frowned "I don't-"

"I had sex with him." Lily said quietly, her face in her hands "Twice."

Marlene grinned "Fucking hell - is he as good as they say?"

When Lily did not respond, Alice asked, staring at the red haired girl "When?"

"The first time was the first Thursday of October."

"Where?" Marlene inquired, sitting cross legged on the floor by the foot of Lily's bed looking far too entertained.

"Oh Merlin..." Lily sighed, rolling over so she was face down on the mattress "Oh Merlin..."

"Where?" Alice frowned "Was it in here?"

"No."

"His dorm?"

"No."

"Oh God - was it in the changing rooms?"

Lily doubted it was possible to be any more embarrassed as she whispered "No...it was in the Library."

There was a deafening silence followed by a roar of laughter on Marlene's behalf. After a few minutes, Lily pulled herself up to a sitting position, leaning against her pillows and looking as exhausted as she would if she'd just ran a marathon.

Alice slowly began to laugh and then Lily joined in, until all girls were hysterical and unable to breathe.

"James Potter." Marlene chuckled "Go on - was it good?"

Lily hiccuped, rubbing her eyes and smiling "I'm not going to lie - it wasn't disappointing."

"Lucky bitch." Marlene shook her head "My first time was shit."

"Jake Robinson, wasn't it?" Lily smiled "In a broom cupboard?"

"Yeah, well we don't all have the luxury of sleeping with people who can _read_."

Lily laughed and Alice asked the next question "How did it - you know...happen?"

"We were talking...for the first time since that argument and then he called me close-minded and he was just really _near me_and we were...I don't know really, I suppose it was because he said he wanted me."

"Wanted you?"

"Yeah...then I asked him how many girls he'd said that too and then he said none, because he has morals and he doesn't tell such big lies and then...well, then we were kissing and he's a very good kisser...actually...and then one thing lead to another and-"

"You shagged him." Marlene smiled "That's adorable."

Lily laughed, feeling much more at ease than she had before.

"The second time?" Alice asked.

"We were in the Head's bathroom...the night before we'd almost kissed and there was all this tension and then it just happened. That was better - we were both calmer."

"What triggered it?"

Lily scratched her head "...I called him James."

The two girls stared.

x

"Right, so if you could all sign this parchment so we know you've turned up - that would be great." James concluded, running a hand absently through his hair as he sat on the edge of the wooden desk.

Lily stood behind the desk and pushed the parchment forward as the Prefects began to form a line.

"How many are here do you think?"

"Dunno." James shrugged "Probably about four or five missing."

Lily nodded "Not too bad then..."

"No, but when I get hold of the lazy gits who can't be arsed to come-"

"You won't _do_ anything, will you?" She asked sharply.

"Couldn't bear it if I was kicked off, eh, Evans?" James winked and Lily rolled her eyes.

"Hey." A voice said, and she looked up into the warm blue eyes of Michael McCartney.

"Oh - hi!" She smiled "I'm gad you're not one of the one's who don't bother turning up."

He chuckled "Yeah? Well, I don't know...I quite fancy being disciplined by you, to be honest."_  
_

Lily raised an eyebrow and smiled "That's enough of that, I think."

"Hmm, we'll see about that on Saturday." He winked and dropped the quill "Courtyard at ten?"

"Sounds great."

He smiled and walked out of the room, leaving Lily with butterflies. She smiled and felt her hand go to her hair, wishing she'd worn it down rather than in a ponytail. The Prefects continued to sign the parchment until eventually the only people in the room were James and Lily.

"Okay, so are you going to tell me who the _fuck_ he was?" James asked, cutting into the silence.

"Michael McCartney." She said, rather stiffly.

"Yes, I can see that from the signature." He responded, sarcastically.

"Then why ask?"

"Saturday?"

"What about it?"

"What's _happening _on Saturday, Evans?" His voice shook slightly and Lily looked up, startled. His eyes were dark and an expression most unusual flashed across his face - he looked hurt and angry, almost upset.

"I'm going to Hogsmeade with him." She replied quietly "Why?"

"No reason." He snapped, standing up "Have fun." He added bitterly, striding out of the room and yanking off his tie as he went.

Lily felt tears sting at her eyes and let them flow as she collapsed onto a chair, wondering what was the matter with her. She could there for hours, with tears streaming silently down her face and her head in her hands. she had no concept of time until she felt an arm pull her towards a musky-smelling chest.

"What's he done?" Remus' voice was soft and soothing as he stroked her hair.

"How did you know it's - it's him?" She sniffed, wiping her eyes.

He passed her a tissue from his pocket and smiled "You two can affect each other more than any two people I've ever met. James stormed past us all and went to bed, refusing to speak to anyone and now I find you in a classroom in this state? C'mon, Lily, who else would it be?"

Lily sniffed, her eyes stinging "He didn't do _anything_...and that's the problem." She shook her head "I have a date on Saturday."

"Oh?"

"And he found out and he looked - Remus he looked _hurt_."

"You really do underestimate how much he likes you, Lily." Remus shrugged "And this year...you've been getting closer. Hope is dangerous and, over the past few months, James has been growing more and more of it." He paused "But why are _you_ crying?"

"I don't know." She shook her head "His face was...I don't want to be responsible for hurting somebody like that. And that sounds selfish and horrible but Potter has never seemed - he just doesn't come across as the sort of person who can get hurt. I don't want to upset him."

"It's not selfish, it's perfectly understandable..."

"But?"

"But he _does_ really like you, if you haven't already noticed. And I highly doubt that he's going to give up."

x

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	18. Deer

The next day was a Friday. Friday, it transpired, was a revolutionary day for both Lily Evans _and_ James Potter.

Charms class was the last lesson of the day. A lesson that Lily had not been looking forward to in the slightest, given the events of the previous evening.

After Christmas, James had returned being able to produce a fully fledged, corporeal Patronus - obviously, in the form of a Magnificent Stag - while everybody else, besides Peter Pettigrew, could merely manage to summon a few white hints of their own.

Lily Evans sat at her seat, on Friday the 4th of February, desperate and determined that _today_ would be the day that she would produce a Patronus of her own. She was eager to find out what form it would take but would bet a fair few galleons on an owl - her favourite of all animals.

Slinkslope entered the room and sat at his desk, pulling several pieces of parchment out of a draw "Today will be your final lesson on this, before we move on to other things so try your hardest. So far, Potter has been the only student to successfully - where is he?"

"Here sir."

Lily felt a unwelcome wave of goosebumps erupt down her body at the husky voice and then shivered ever so slightly as he dropped into the seat beside her, ignoring her presence completely.

"Sorry I'm late."

"Well where have you been?"

He smirked "I had to escort a young lady up to divination - she was in a bit of a state, actually."

Sirius wolf whistled and Lily felt her stomach drop through the floor.

_He'd been with a girl._

_Who was she?_

_Had they had sex?_

_Did he like her?_

Lily shook her head, disgusted. what did it matter - after all? He was only James Potter - entitled to do whatever the hell he pleased.

"That's enough, Black." Slinkslope warned "Very well, Potter - do you think you could show us your Patronus? I was just commenting on how you are the only student to have conquered-"

"Actually, I don't think I can." James cut him off "I'm not in the best of moods so I doubt I can summon the required dose of happiness."

Something in Lily's stomach twisted, first in guilt and then with absurd hope.

_Stop it _she warned herself, sitting up and pulling out her wand as Slinkslope frowned.

"Oh dear. Well, I hope you're feeling better soon - perhaps you could show us at the end?"

"Yeah...perhaps."

Lily stood up with the rest of the class and walked over to her two best friends with a grim look on her face.

"Was that about you and McCartney?" Marlene asked, with a raised eyebrow.

"I hope not." Lily replied. She had only told her friends that James had walked off, annoyed the previous evening - not about the response it had brought out in herself.

"Holy shit." The dark haired girl shook her head "He's got it bad. Then again...you did sleep with him."

"_Shut up_." Lily hissed and Marlene smiled.

Alice shook her head "It's unbelievable."

"What is?"

"How much he lets you affect him. Seriously - he responds to you in a different way to everybody else and I don't mean this in a horrible way but -"

"What?"

"Well," a pink tinge began to flush below her cheekbones "You're kind of the same - he's always been able to irritate you _far_ more than anyone else."

"That's because he _is_ irritating."

Alice shrugged "Yes, sometimes."

Lily did not respond how she would have liked with _'Always' _and instead turned to the front of the classroom and conjured up the memory she'd been using for the past month and a half.

_Her hair was whipping around her face in the early summer breeze and Petunia was laying on the grassy bank. The swings were rocking gently and Lily took her opportunity to leap onto one, jumping over twenty foot._

_"Lily!" Petunia squealed, propping herself up on two elbows "Stop that - it's dangerous!"_

_"I'm fine, Tuney..." She laughed, before humming the introduction to _Hey Jude_, a song she'd took a great liking to as a child._

_"I really wish you wouldn't." Petunia muttered, lying back down on the warm grass and sneezing from hayfever._

_The black haired boy appeared as if by magic, walking from the shadows of the huge willow tree that the park had been named after._

_"Hi Lily!" His face took on a whole new meaning as he said the two words, as if nothing could make him happier._

_"Hey, Sev." Lily smiled in return and his eyes twinkled "Petunia - say, hi!"_

_"I'm not saying hello to _him." S_he hissed, standing up and storming away._

_"I'm sorry." Lily said, watching after her sister sadly "She doesn't mean to be-"_

_"I don't care." He shook his head "I just car about you, being happy. You'll be happier at Hogwarts."_

_A warm glow began to swell inside the eleven year old girl's heart as she imagined the place her best friend was constantly talking about - a place where she was normal, a place where she wouldn't be judged for the extraordinary things that she could do, a place where she would well and truly_ belong.

_"Expecto Patronum!" _Lily waved her wand in the required motion and opened her eyes, to see barely a handful of silvery wisps escape the end. She groaned in anger and lifted her wand again.

It took another half an hour of disappointment before she finally gave in.

"S_ir_ I _really _can't do this!"

"Potter - go and help Evans, seen as you seem to be overtaking her in this subject."

"I wouldn't go that far." James responded softly, but walked over to Lily all his same, his face unreadable.

"Close your eyes." He ordered, before she could say anything. He was standing a safe distance away and his voice was meaningful "Close your eyes and forget whatever crap you were thinking of before-"

"It was not-"

"Evans, don't push me." He snarled, stepping closer. "Close your eyes and go back to the last time you were completely, truly, happy. I'm not interested in getting ten points for Gryffindor or becoming Head Girl - go back to the last time you felt, whatever moment it was, you wanted to stay in it forever. Not before it happened, not after it happened - I want you to go back to the _exact _moment. Now, smell whatever you could smell at the time, inhale the air of wherever you were, feel the touch of whoever you were with...and," His voice was slightly breathless as he muttered into her ear "Feel the swooping feeling in your stomach that symbolises complete and utter _ecstasy_." He paused, before muttering, almost silently "Can you feel it?"

Yes, was the answer.

_She could smell the wood of the bookshelves in the Library, feel the tiles of the Head's Bathroom pressed against her. She was inhaling the scent from the bubblebath and the woody, burning scent of the person she was with. She could hear books falling to the floor yet, for the first time in her life, she couldn't care less if they were broken or ruined. She could sense him, by her, next to her, touching every spot on her body and then_ -

"_Expecto Patronum_!" she knew it had worked, but she kept her eyes squeezed shut, entranced by the memories inside her head.

"Oh my god." she felt James Potter's hand leave her forearm and sensed him retreat backwards "Oh my god."

She could hear everybody in the class muttering and heard Sirius shout "I wonder who she was thinking of when she cast that one, eh?"

Frowning, Lily opened her eyes and, in her own shock, dropped her wand to the floor.

For it was not an owl, as she had expected, but a doe.

A bright silver, glowing doe.

x

I hope you all like it - this is my favourite chapter of the whole story :-)

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	19. Revelations

After Charms, Lily disappeared and was not seen again, despite Alice, Frank, Marlene and Remus' efforts, until ten o'clock the next morning.

The courtyard was cold, but she appeared looking fresh and awake, despite the fact she hadn't slept in her own bed. Her face was slightly on the pale side but her cheeks were pink and her eyes bright. Her red hair was falling in its natural waves down her back and, as she greeted the seventeen year old boy that she was meeting, nobody would think twice about it. It was a normal exchange between a beautiful young woman and a very lucky young man.

The pair walked down to Hogsmeade, laughing and telling each other about their lives.

"So you're a half blood?" Lily asked politely, undoing the buttons of her red duffle coat as the sun appeared from behind a cloud "That must be odd for you."

"Not really," he shrugged "Although, I was a bit worried that I'd only get Mum's side - I really wanted to come to Hogwarts after my Dad explained it all."

"Did he tell you all about it from being young, then?"

"Well, obviously he tried to keep it quiet - make it sound less impressive in case I wasn't magic, you know..." He smiled "But I found the moving photos and asked a lot of questions and it all came out..."

"Ah," Lily nodded "What does he do?"

Michael answered and Lily responded with enthusiasm, not entirely following the conversation whatsoever. The two went into Madame Puddifoot's, Honeyduke's and then to the Shrieking Shack. Throughout this time, Lily attempted to be cheerful, attempted to keep her mind anywhere else but on the previous day's Charms lesson but was finally pushed over the edge at four o'clock.

"It's been good, today." Michael smiled down at Lily, pushing a strand of hair out of her face and tucking it behind her ear.

"I've had fun." She lied easily, standing up to kiss him on the cheek "Thank you."

The courtyard was completely deserted apart from the pair - most people were either inside or still down in the village. The February wind blew over, stinging Lily's cheeks slightly.

Michael took her hand with a gloved one of his own, after watching her for a few moments and then leant in.

The kiss was not unpleasant. No, it was definitely nice, but there was a problem. And the problem, it seemed, was a very big one. Because the lips that were moving against her's were not familiar and warm. The body did not smell of fire and all things adventurous. The arms holding her were not muscular. No, the kiss was foreign and different and stirred up absolutely no passion whatsoever. And what was worse? Lily didn't want Michael's lips on her own. No, she wanted somebody else's.

After about thirty seconds, Michael pulled away "Okay."

Lily bit her lip "Erm..."

"Who is it?"

"Sorry?"

"You might find me nice and a decent person but you don't like me...not that way, anyhow. There's someone else, isn't there?"

"I really _want_ to like you." Lily sighed, exasperated "You have no idea how much I _want_ to like you, Michael..."

"But you don't." He smiled softly "That's okay - as long as I didn't do anything wrong."

"No - you're lovely and there were plenty of girls out there today who noticed it." Lily pushed her hair from her face and looked sincerely up at the boy in front of her "I'm so sorry."

"That's fine." He smiled "See you around, Lily."

"Bye Michael."

She watched him go and then sat down on a bench, closing her eyes and letting her brain fill with snippets of conversation, stolen kisses and passionate arguments that had been trying to invade her mind all day.

After a few minutes of this, Lily stood up, shook herself off and walked up to the Common Room. It was empty, apart from a few second years scribbling notes down on the uses of Dragon Blood.

As Lily had expected, Alice Fortescue was sat on her bed. In her hand was a muggle detective story that Lily had leant her -_ Agatha Christie's Poirot_.

"Lily!" He eyes widened as she ran to her friend "We were looking for you last night are you-"

"Alice, I need to talk to you."

"Of course, what about?" she pulled Lily over to her bed by the hand and the pair sat down "Frank's still in Hogsmeade, I had loads of work to do so I stayed here, I've just finished - what is it?"

"Alice-" Lily shook her head, feeling slightly nauseous at the very thought of what she was about to say "I think...and I don't know when it all started and _how_ I neglected to notice but...I think I might be falling in love with James Potter."

There was complete silence for a few minutes and then Alice smiled.

"What?" Lily asked, startled.

"Yes." She laughed "Yes, I think you have been for quite some time."

"Really?" Lily's eyes widened "Because I couldn't stand him-"

"Let's start with the facts," Said Alice, crossing her legs and beginning to count the points on her fingers "Your Patronus' show that you are literally soul mates, you've had sex twice because you can't control the way you feel around each other and you've spent seven years of your life saying that you 'hate' him. Hate is often confused with love - they both make you feel very passionate and overwhelmed."

Lily stared at the blonde haired girl in front of her, who's wisdom she had never truly appreciated.

"Alice, you're a genius." She looked at her seriously "Has anyone ever told you?"

She blushed ever so slightly "No I'm not. Now - what are we going to do about this?"

"About what?"

"What do you think?"

"Oh." Lily shook her head "What can I do?"

"Well, seen as he's obviously crazy about you then I think he'd be more than willing to go out with you-"

"No." Lily shook her head "No, that's the thing..."

"What's the thing?" Alice frowned.

"I don't want to go out with him. I don't _like_ him as a person most of the time...I need to talk to him."

"Yes, you do." She touched Lily's arm "He didn't go to Hogsmeade, today."

Lily hugged her friend tightly for a moment before standing up and heading for the door "Thank you, Alice!"

"No problem." The girl watched her friend with a set of pleased blue eyes, before picking up the book beside her and continuing to read.

x

In Lily's favour, the boy's staircase was completely empty. She did not meet a single person as she climbed the tower, reaching the dormitory that was desired.

Taking a deep breath, she knocked on the wooden, arch shaped door and waited.

There was no answer for a moment, but then a few footsteps echoed behind the thick barrier and Lily heard a girl giggle.

Her stomach, literally, seemed to plunge through the floor.

_He was with a girl._

_A girl._

_Who was she?_

_Oh, shit...he's about to answer the door and I'm still here -_

"Evansssss..." Sirius lengthened her name, a smile on his face.

Lily looked up, shocked "Are you - who are you-"

"I'm not doing anything wrong, and we're not being loud so why are you-"

"Sirius!" She laughed and hugged him "You're having sex?"

"Yes?" He frowned, but tapped her on the back all the same.

"Good." She grinned "Enjoy yourself."

"I will...but what did you want?"

"Potter." she smiled with relief "You wouldn't happen to know where he is, would you?"

"Not a clue - I've barely seen him since yesterday...he wasn't at dinner."

"No, yes, right...okay, I'll just have to find him."

"Okay, bye Lil." He went to close the door but Lily stopped him.

"Sirius?"

"Yeah?"

"If you see him - tell him I'm looking for him...please?"

"Okay." He looked confused but smiled all the same.

She returned the gesture and ran down the stairs, out of the common room and let her instincts take her where she needed to go.

x

Okay, so I really hope this didn't come across as a 'Suddenly, Lily Evans realised she was madly in love with James Potter' sort of chapter because, while she has kind of realised that she might be _falling_ in love with him, it certainly hasn't happened suddenly.

Now, as for the fact that her patronus was conjured after thoughts of sleeping with him - that's really the only time that she's ever spent being really close to him, apart from New Year's Eve, when she was drunk so I don't think that would count. I don't think it's necessarily the _sex_ part of it, more just the fact she was with him...that's wht I was going for, anyway :-)

If you all think it's a bit sudden and extreme and ruins the plot then I'll happily re-do it to make it better so let me know! Review please!


	20. A Conversation

_The Quidditch Pitch_.

To be honest, she wasn't surprised. Where else would he go?

She watched from the stands, observing him as he dipped and dived and narrowly avoided about fifty fatal crashes that would have tricked any other Quidditch player in the school. James didn't notice her for a long time, but when he did he dipped down and landed on the stand, a few metres from where she was sat.

He walked towards her with a frown on his face.

"Why are you here, of all places?" He gestured towards the Pitch, a place that Lily had made no effort in hiding her distaste for, over the years. "Didn't think it was your scene."

"Yeah well, life's full of unsuspected surprises." She said, and he smirked slightly.

"Yes, that it is."

"Besides, I thought you might be here."

"And you still came?" He raised an eyebrow "Are you alright?"

"Could you just, cut the sarcasm for a second?"

"Sorry." He smiled slightly "Why were you looking for me? If you can't do duty tomorrow then it's okay because Remus-"

"No, I want - need to talk to you."

His eyes widened momentarily "Oh. Well, one minute then; come in here..."

Lily followed him down a few steps and into the boys changing room.

"I've never been in here - I think it's the only room in the school that I haven't been inside, you know..."

James laughed lightly, placing his broom on a bench "I bet I could show you a fair few rooms you've never seen before."

"Probably." She agreed, with a reluctant smile.

James shrugged off his jacket and took off his t-shirt, revealing a tanned chest and incredibly muscular physique. Lily blinked ever so slightly as he pulled on a white t-shirt to match the grey jogging bottoms he was wearing. It wasn't a lot, but Lily couldn't deny that he looked incredibly attractive.

"I'd apologise but it isn't like you've never seen it before..." He ran a hand through his hair and sat down "So...what did - do you want?"

She looked down at her painted nails, suddenly feeling very nervous "I- I just...I think...I-"

"You look terrified." He frowned "What's up? Are you okay-"

"Yes, yes I'm fine." She laughed slightly "It's about yesterday...in-"

"Charms." He nodded, and then paused for a moment "Hmm."

"Yeah...I don't...I wasn't expecting it." she shook her head "I mean, maybe it's coincidence..."

James made a slight noise in the back of his throat and Lily put her face in her hands.

"Please don't laugh at me Potter." She mumbled "This is bad enough without-"

"_P__lease_ don't tell me that its coincidence. Even against your standards, that would just be stupidly stubborn." He paused, before reaching for her wrists and pulling them slowly away from her face, saying seriously "I'm not laughing."

She nodded "I went to the library, afterwards to look up Patronus'. I thought it might have something to do with the memory I used or the fact that you were talking to me...but it's impossible."

"Why?" He tilted his head to one side "What memory did you use?"

"I used two."

"Okay...which ones?"

She looked at him sarcastically "Guess."

"Oh." He smiled slightly as she blushed "Well, is it's any consolation for you...that's the one I used the first time I got mine, too..."

"Really?" She frowned "Not Sirius?"

"Sirius?" he suddenly looked immensely confused "Why would I think about sleeping with him?"

She laughed "No - I mean, a memory you have with him."

"Oh!" He smirked "Oh, right. I used that first...to get the first bit of one."

"Ah."

"Yeah..." He looked her in the eye "So what do you want to do?"

"I don't know." She shook her head "I really don't know."

"Well - are you still seeing that McCartney?" He asked, his jaw set.

"No." She shook her head "No."

"Oh." He paused "Why?"

"I went to Hogsmeade with him today...and then he kissed me and there was just nothing as opposed to..."

"Yes?"

"Well..." She blushed "The _something_ that there was with you."

At this, he looked satisfied "Good."

She rolled her eyes and then frowned "What about yesterday?"

"What about it?"

"The girl you said you were with-"

"Oh there was no girl." He smirked "I was flying - but I figured a girl would bother you more."

She shook her head in disbelief but he smiled.

"Okay - I have an idea."

"What?"

He pulled her up and dropped her hands so that they were stood facing each other without touching.

"Right - I know that you don't like me and you probably don't even want to be with me but after all of this - after everything...you have to admit that there's _something_."

"What's your point?"

"So pretend you don't know me. Pretend you've never met me and you're judging me on nothing but first impressions. And I'll do the same..."

She thought for a moment, biting her bottom lip and making every muscle in James' body want to slam her against the nearest wall.

"Okay - you go first."

"Right...your eyes. I've never seen anybody with eyes that shade of green in my life and...they're not the sort you forget."

Lily nodded slightly "Your hair." She admitted, and he smiled "As much as it bugs me...there's something about it."

"Your figure."

"Your complexion."

"Your hair - something to grab hold of."

"Mouth - you look like a good kisser."

"I am. Your arse."

"Yes - that on you, too."

He smiled "The freckles you get in summer."

"Your body."

"Your eye-lashes."

"Your jaw."

"Boobs."

"Cheekbones."

"Lips."

"Teeth."

"Nose."

"Arms."

"Smile."

"Eyes."

"Eyes."

"You've said that."

"I meant it."

There was a pause and then Lily nodded "Right...so we find each other attractive."

James smirked and Lily frowned.

"What _now_?"

"Nothing..." He smiled "You've just got _no idea_ how long I've been waiting for you to admit that."

"Well I only actually noticed that _this_ year, so don't count your chickens before they've hatched."

He frowned "Chickens - What?"

"Muggle expression." She shook her head "Never mind."

He rolled his eyes and then leant against the wall, his head tilted to one side "So...what is it then, Evans?"

"What's what?"

"What is it that's stopping you from wanting to be with me? It can't be that I piss you off because you can be quite, shall we say, _irritating_ yourself and I still want to be with _you_ so..."

She shook her head "I don't know, Potter."

"Okay." He shrugged "I believe you...just let me know, won't you? If you still can't decide by June then I'll leave here, never see you again and...finally get over you."

She stared "What?"

"You heard."

"Yes but...why?" She shook her head "_Why_ would you be willing to-"

"It's funny...isn't it?" He shrugged, walking to the door and then stopping "The things I'm willing to do for a girl I've argued with for seven years straight."

Lily watched him carefully as he left. He strolled across the Quidditch Pitch, hands in pockets, seeming perfectly at ease.

Just before he reached half way, he called, without turning round "Let me know."

Lily just stared.

x


	21. The Room of Requirement

The following Wednesday evening, Lily was running late. It was nine minutes past eight and she was supposed to have started her first rounds of the week almost ten minutes previously.

Her feet pattered on the ground lightly as she checked her watch, running a hand through her hair and glancing sideways at her reflection in a suit of armour, which nodded appreciatively.

Lily had not had any direct contact with James Potter since Saturday evening. Apart from the odd glance and smile across the Common Room or a classroom, she'd barely seen anything of him.

"You look lovely, Miss Evans." One of Lily's favourite oil paintings assured her "But what is the rush?"

"Head Duty." She paused for a second.

"Ah, with the _Potter_ boy?" The fat little monk raised an eyebrow.

Lily smiled slightly in response and he bowed a bald head.

"I see...well, you'd best be going."

"Yes." She nodded "Bye, Robin."

"Best of luck!" He called after her.

Lily came out on the grand staircase before jogging down three floors to the entrance hall. By the door to the courtyard, Lily could see James talking to a blushing third year. She rolled her eyes and made to walk over but was stopped by a voice that made her entire body freeze.

"Well, I never thought I'd see you drop to _that_ standard."

Fury already beginning to boil inside her, Lily turned around to look straight in the eyes of the boy with whom she had once been best friends.

"What are you talking about?"

"Even the best of us eat our words, _Lily_." He emphasized her first name, irony ringing through his voice like bells in a deserted church. "Going from the expression on your face, you've changed your mind about a certain _arrogant toe-rag_."

"How _dare_ you-" Before she even realised it herself, her wand was out and pressed against the chest of the greasy haired boy "What I do, _Severus_, is absolutely _none_ of your business any more - I think you've made that quite clear. Would you agree?"

Something like hurt crossed his face but was quickly replaced with bitter amusement "So it's true then - is it?" He laughed with no humour "Lily Evans has fallen for the _great_ James Potter."_  
_

"Like I said," She looked him straight in the taunting, black eyes and spoke steadily "Through no fault of my own, _you_ are no longer a part of my life and so whatever I choose to do does not, and _will never again,_ concern you."

"Here he comes." Snape continued "_Prince Charming_."

"What's up?" James asked Lily calmly.

The red haired girl shook her head "Nothing. He isn't my problem any more."

Snape pushed her wand away, looking James up and down "_Potter._" He gave him a look of pure hatred "It's been a while since I've had the pleasure."

"Yes." James stepped forward - he was taller and far more muscular than Severus but he did nothing more than raise an eyebrow and smile slightly "Let's not leave it so long, next time."

There was silence for a few seconds and then Lily stepped backwards, turned and then walked away. After a moment of staring Snape in the eye, James followed, catching her up relatively easily.

They walked out of the front door and, instinctively, both turned down the path leading to the lake, rather than the bridge that would have taken them to a different part of the castle.

Neither of them spoke but the silence wasn't necessarily uncomfortable. Instead, it was filled with each other's thoughts.

They stopped when they reached the lake, sitting down on a rock that jutted out over the water.

"I don't want to talk about it." She told him, her voice steady but the anger was evident.

"I'm not asking you to." James lay down on the rock, hands interlocked, providing a cushion on which to rest his head. He looked up at the sky, already midnight blue colour despite the early hour "This is the first night that there haven't been clouds, you know."

"What?" Lily was caught completely off guard, and looked back at James with a frown on her face.

"Look up." He pointed to the sky "Stars."

"Oh." She tilted her head to one side "Oh, yeah..."

"They normally come earlier - around your birthday, I'd say." He cocked his head to one side "They're late this year."

"You don't _do_ Astronomy."

He smirked "Even so, when you sneak out of the grounds as much as I used to, it's difficult not to notice the patterns of the sky."

Lily shook her head but smiled "Honestly...I still can't believe you got Head Boy."

"Says the girl who's sat by the lake at quarter to nine of a Wednesday Evening - not only neglecting her role as _Head Girl_, but at the same time breaking about four of five school rules." He shook his head in the same way she had "_Really__, _Lily Evans, I expected more of you."

"Yes well, you're a terrible influence, _James Potter_."

"Oh, I know." He grinned "It's one of my best qualities."

Lily laughed, and the happiness of the sound shocked her somewhat "Go on then, Potter...tell me something else."

"About what, exactly?" He laughed.

"The sky."

"Well that really bright one up there is the Sirius star. It's the brightest one in the sky and now - between Winter and Spring - is the best time to see it."

"Really?"

"Yeah - it's funny because it's about this time of year that Sirius - as in the _person_ - is the most calmest."

Lily looked at James, a peculiar expression on her face.

"What?"

"Nothing." She shook her head "You just know him so well...and care about him."

"He's my best friend." He said softly "Of course I do - I'd die rather than let anything happen to him and he'd do the same...hopefully."

Lily laughed softly, touching James's arm "He would."

James smiled slightly before gesturing above them once more "You're an Aquarius, aren't you?"

"Yeah..."

"Well, directly in front of you, just over the trees, is the Aquarius constellation." He ran a hand through his hair and pointed"It's supposed it be a water bearer."

"Where?"

"Above the trees..." he pointed and Lily turned her head to the side, frowning.

"No, I can't see it."

James sat up, moving behind her "Do you mind?"

She raised an eyebrow and he smirked, sitting so that she was between his legs, her back against his chest.

"There..." He lifted her arm up and pointed, his head close to hers "There's a few stars that make it out - it's a boy, pouring water."

"Oh." She said softly, after a while "I can see it now."

"Really?" He muttered, and then he rested his head on he shoulder "Fucking hell, Evans."

She realised that their hands were still connected and something - she didn't quite know what - but _something_ made her squeeze his hand lightly and, as sometimes happens with certain things, this small, insignificant event set off a series of reactions.

James, at feeling the pressure of her skin on his, breathed out onto Lily's neck, sending goosebumps down her arms and legs and causing her to shiver. James then, with his other hand, rubbed her upper arm.

"You're cold."

"No, I'm fine." She responded quietly, turning to face him.

James said nothing, but looked at her steadily for several minutes, a frown forming on his face all the while.

"You're so difficult to understand." He muttered, finally.

"Yes, well, you're no open-book yourself, Potter."

"Well then..." He tilted his head to the side and smiled "Looks like we're even then, doesn't it."

"Seems so." Lily said, glancing at his lips.

Looking back - Lily supposed that _that_ was the final straw. Because as soon as her eyes drew back up to his, the mouth that she'd been looking at was on hers and his hands were pushing her back onto the rock, his breath hot and desperate.

Lily went along with it, running her hands down his chest, bringing then back up to his shoulders and pulling him closer, tugging ever so slightly on his hair as he began to kiss her neck.

His hands seem to be everywhere - on her waist, her thighs, her chest...he ran a hand under her t-shirt, feeling the cool flesh of her slim stomach and Lily gasped.

"We can't do this here..." She panted, pushing herself up to rest on her elbows.

"It _is_ a bit cold..." He trailed off and the pair looked at each other and laughed.

"Where then?" Lily looked at him "There'll be people starting to go to bed so we can't go to our dorms..."

James bit his lip for a second, before smiling and kissing her quickly once again "Come on - I've got somewhere..."

Lily let him pull her up and followed him to the castle. He slipped in through a door Lily had never noticed and up a narrow, dusty corridor. He stopped suddenly a few minutes later at what seemed to be the back of a tapestry. He took her hand and pulled her through it - the material, although appearing as a solid, was in fact the same consistency as the barrier between Kings Cross Station and Platform Nine and Three Quarters.

"Oh my God..." Lily muttered into the dark corridor, and James chuckled lightly.

He lead her through a few more corridors that were foreign to her in the darkness until he stopped outside a stretch of brick wall and pushed her against it, kissing her carefully, passionately.

"Where are we?" She whispered, as he pulled away, smiling.

"You'll see." He replied. He leant down to kiss her once more and then Lily felt herself falling through a door.

"Oh!" She looked around at the King size, four poster bed with the scarlet hangings and the rich, cream carpet under her feet and the hundreds of candles, floating above them - the only source of light. "We're in the Room of Requirement..." She smiled slightly, recognising the place from a story Frank Longbottom had once told her. "How did you get-"

"I _know_, this castle, Evans." He said, a hint of pride in his words.

"Yes...you do, don't you?" She looked around "I underestimated you."

He smirked and the two looked at each other, before kissing once again. They began to undress and James was in nothing but his trousers, Lily in her bra and knickers when he finally picked her up off the ground and carried her over to the bed, her legs wrapped tightly around his waist and her hands lost in his hair.

x

Okay! So, obviously, I think the time has come for them to have sex in an actual bed...

I'm going to start the next chapter right now because I'm quite excited.

It's funny, because I was writing the bit on the rock where they kiss for ages and I had iTunes open and I really _couldn't_ get it right...but then a song called 'Our Perfect Disease' by The Wombats came on and that was actually the song I'd been listening to (hence the name of the story) when I got the idea for this whole thing and, as I was listening to it, I was writing and it just kind of happened and now I'm really happy with that bit...which is odd.

Anyway - review please!

Also, don't worry - they're going to get together _very_ soon...this isn't just another random burst of sex.

x


	22. A Stag in The Forest

Lily woke up the next morning, a feeling of complete and utter peace filling every muscle in her body. The sheets were tangled around her and sunlight was pouring in through a window that she hadn't noticed the previous evening.

She rolled over, about to share this piece of information, but found the bed empty. Her mood plummeted and she swore loudly, wrapping herself in one of the sheets and padding over to a full length mirror - another feature of the room that she was sure she hadn't seen the night before.

Her hair was tousled, falling down her back in waves and her eyes were alive and bright. Her skin was creamy and fresh and she felt, despite wondering where the hell James Potter had disappeared to, far more refreshed than she had for a very long time.

With a sudden start, she realised it was a Thursday and, in a panic, turned around too quickly and tripped on the sheet. She grabbed the four poster bed to steady herself and looked upwards at a clock that had formed on the opposite wall - this room was _incredible_.

The clock in question read eight-thirty. She'd missed breakfast, but she wasn't particularly hungry anyway and with a sigh of relief, Lily realised that she had two free periods first thing, giving her plenty of time.

Smiling, she closed her eyes and thought '_I need a bathroom.'_

No sooner had she opened her eyes than she saw a brand new wooden door in the cream wall, to the left of the magnificent bed. She crossed the room and turned the brass handle, walking into a shower room, complete with a sink and toothbrush.

Half an hour later, Lily walked out, wrapped in a fluffy white towel. She hadn't bothered with washing her hair because it was clean, so she pulled it out of its bobble and dried her skin, before dressing into her school uniform which had appeared, folded and ironed, on the end of the bed.

She left the room at quarter past nine and walked down through the school, until she was out in the cool grounds. She passed nobody as she walked around the lake once and ended up on the outskirts of the forest. She sat down on a fallen tree-trunk, looking out across the calm water.

She sat there for a while, breathing in the air that seemed a few shades fresher than that up at the Castle, until a rustling noise disturbed the silence. She turned around to look at the line of trees behind her but saw nothing.

Nothing, that was, until it appeared.

A huge, chocolate brown stag emerged from the trees, freezing Lily to the spot. She didn't know whether to run or move closer - there was something incredibly soothing about the majestic way in which it approached. It's hooves snapped a twig and Lily jumped slightly, her heart beating quickly.

The deer moved closer and closer until, her breath catching, she could reach out and touch its soft fur. The beautiful creature blinked, causing Lily to notice his eyes.

They were brown, flecked with droplets of green and gold that glinted in the morning sunshine and framed with thick, black lashes that she was _sure_ she seen somewhere else.

It was as if the creature had come to her in a dream and now she was seeing him in real life for the first time - as if she'd _seen_ the fur, but never stroked it, as if she'd been observed with the eyes, but never made any contact.

"You know," She said softly "I'm sure I've seen you somewhere before. It's as if I know you._" _

The stag tilted its head to one side and made a humming noise in the back of its throat as Lily continued to stroke between its ears.

"_Oh my God_." Suddenly, her whole body stiffened and she stared, jumping up and stepping backwards over the log, pointing at the creature with a horrified expression on her face _"Oh my God!"_

The creature had a funny look on its face - half amused, half exasperated at her reaction. With a snort, it reared onto its hind legs and cantered into the forest.

Lily stood, frozen, staring at the spot where the animal had vanished until a teenage boy appeared, wearing his school pants and an unbuttoned shirt, his black hair incredibly messy.

He walked briskly up to Lily, who's eyes were still wide, staring.

"Well that was pleasant." He said, a smirk in his voice.

Slowly, she took her hand away from her mouth and looked up at him "You...I had no idea...that is..."

"Why are you so shocked?" He frowned "You've seen McGonagall do it plenty of time-"

"She's a _cat_!" Lily exclaimed "She's _small_! You are _huge_!"

"Well, thank you." He grinned and Lily hit his arm.

"Shut up - you know what I mean." She winced "Bloody hell - you really are _good_ at Transfiguration."

He laughed "And you really are something else, Evans."

She smiled slightly, starting to fasten his shirt "You know...I wondered where you'd gone...this morning...I thought-"

"I needed to think. I figured that you were going to freak out again and not talk to me for months-"

"I'm not freaking out."

"Actually, you kind of just did-"

"_Because you turned into a fucking deer_!" She gestured wildly with her arms and James laughed, grabbing her by the wrists and pulling her towards him.

"You do seem very calm about the fact that we were having sex a few hours ago." He tilted his head to one side.

"Yeah, well I like you Potter." she shrugged her shoulder "Sooner or later I'd have to accept it and...well, I'm doing it before it's too late."

He raised an eyebrow "You like me?"

"Yes."

"Say that again." His voice was steady, even, slightly disbelieving.

"James Potter - I like you." She paused "Very much so, actually...even though you _are_ an absolute dick-head and at times and I would _really _love to hex you into oblivion but...Yes...I like you."

He looked at her for a moment, before bending down to kiss her softly on the lips. Against hers, his mouth slowly broke into a smile that filled his entire face and, when he pulled away, his eyes were dancing in the sunshine that bounced off the lake and made the few green leaves on the trees shimmer with the happiness of good weather.

"Yeah?" He breathed, still smiling "Well I like you too, Lily Evans, and I have done for quite a while."

When she reached up to kiss him, it was like she had, single handedly, managed to release Spring from the cruel grasp of a cold and bitter Winter.

x

My second one today! Please review both though - I'm interested as to what you all think ;-)

Unfortunately I can't do anything tomorrow because I'm not at home, but I will possibly write a new chapter on Sunday and it will certainly be up on Monday :-)

Enjoy your Weekend!

xxx


	23. A Long Time Coming

I am _so_ annoyed. I write my chapters using the document manager because my word processor doesn't have a spell check and I pressed 'save' and my internet crashed and I lost it all. A WHOLE chapter. Eugh. So now I'm going to try again...

x

Marlene McKinnon's morning had not been a fantastic one. She'd missed breakfast, had to rush a Herbology essay that she'd completely forgotten about and then, on her way back from that particular lesson, had bumped into Sirius Black and a plain-looking fifth year on their way out of a broom cupboard.

"Oh - hi." He nodded in acknowledgement and she rolled her eyes before turning to look at the girl.

"And what's your name?"

"Julia." She said quietly "Julia Pecksniff."

"Lovely," Marlene smiled "Well...did you enjoy that?"

"I don't think that's any of your business!" The girl blushed indignantly.

"I'm just trying to be friendly." She tilted her head to one side "I _was_ going to warn you...but I won't bother, if it's none of my business."

"Warn me about what?"

"About this lovely specimen," Marlene clapped Sirius on the back "to whom you've just given a blow-job."

Her eyes widened "How did you-"

"Oh come on," She raised an eyebrow "Your knees are dirty and his flies are open."

"We could have-"

"Had sex?" Marlene shook her head "Nope; he's just had Arithmancy - not a lesson he'd be willing to skive because it's the only one he's failing in - meaning that you've only had about," she checked her watch "Five minutes? And not even _Sirius _here, can fuck somebody that fast, sweetheart."

The girl opened her mouth and Marlene shook her head.

"No - he clearly wasn't giving you anything in return." She paused "He isn't that generous."

The girl's lip shook slightly and she turned to Sirius for some kind of defence. Unfortunately, however, he was pre-occupied with the zip on his trousers.

"Fine then!" She exclaimed, turning on her heel and marching off.

Marlene chuckled "Lovely meeting you!"

Sirius grinned, before pushing her against the wall and leaning over her with one arm on each side of her head "You care that much?"

Marlene looked up at him, an amused expression on her face "Darling...who said I cared at all?"

He tilted his head to one side "Oh, but we _all_ know you do..."

"Really?" She raised an eyebrow and shrugged "Maybe I do then."

He at her for a minute and she grinned, before reaching up to kiss him lightly on the mouth.

"Eugh -" She pulled a face, ducking out from underneath his left arm "You smell like a prostitute."

Sirius smirked, catching her up as she headed down the corridor "She wasn't very good."

"I doubt she's had much experience."

"Unlike some people."

Marlene laughed "At least I'm good at it."

"Very true." He grinned and she winked in return.

"Have you done that essay for-"

The pair both stopped dead as they turned into the Transfiguration Courtyard . Neither spoke - instead, they both stood with their mouths wide open.

James Potter and Lily Evans were stood together, laughing about something and looking as if Christmas had come early.

"_What the fuck_?" Sirius asked, looking quite disturbed "What's going on?"

"Oh - hey!" Lily smiled.

Marlene raised an eyebrow "Mind explaining?"

"I'd be happy to." James grinned "She _finally_ agreed to go out with me."

"Well, it took you long enough." Marlene responded, but then grinned.

"Miracles really do happen then, Prongsy mate?" Sirius grinned and James punched him in the shoulder.

Remus, Alice and Frank appeared and Marlene shouted "Alice! They're together!"

"Who?"

"Who do you think?" she laughed, pushing Lily forwards.

"Oh my God!" Alice squealed "Really?"

"Yes, really."

"Oooh!" Alice hugged her friend "Thank God...I don't think I could have taken much more."

Lily laughed and looked over her shoulder at Remus, who was smiling softly.

She beamed in return and he winked, before turning to watch James and Sirius wrestle.

"What on earth is all the fuss about?" McGonagall appeared "You sound like a bunch of second years! _Potter, Black_ - stop that at once!"

"James and Lily - Professor." Marlene grinned "Kissing in a tree..._K.I.S.S.I.N.G. First comes love, second comes marriage here comes James in a golden-_"

"McKinnon," McGonagall surveyed the girl with a pair of beady eyes "You do not take my subject and therefore I advise you to disappear to whichever lesson you are supposed to be in right now."

"I have a free so I thought I'd come and hang out with all the exciting Transfiguration lot." She grinned.

"If you wished to _hang out _with us then you should have picked my class. Regretfully," She raised an eyebrow "You did not."

Marlene laughed, beginning to walk away "Have fun!"

"Oh, they will...my classes are _most_ entertaining."

She disappeared around a corner, still cackling, and McGonagall stepped sideways, allowing the class to enter. Lily was at the back and she held out a hand, stopping her.

"Miss Evans."

"Yes, Professor?"

The woman surveyed her for a moment before allowing a smile to creep onto her face "Congratulations."

"I'm going out with him," Lily laughed "not marrying him!"

"Still," She shrugged "It's been a long time coming."

"Yes." Lily laughed "Yes, I suppose it has."

x

Sorry if it isn't very good but I had to try and remember it all ;/


	24. Quidditch Baby

_Opposites attract._

She was commanding.

_He_ was easy going.

She wa_s _academic.

_He_ preferred his broomstick.

She had danced around the edges of very few school rules in her seven years.

_He _had left only a select few unbroken.

She had a certain tolerance with Slytherins.

_He_ had none.

She enjoyed her lessons.

_He_ enjoyed disrupting them.

She was polite, if occasionally impatient.

_He_ was cocky and, despite his efforts, still slightly arrogant.

She rarely cursed.

_He_ swore often.

She had a very hot temper.

_He_ had a dirty sense of humour.

She would have been happy in any of the four Houses.

_He_ was an immensely proud Gryffindor.

She had a very sharp wit.

_His_ was even sharper.

Despite their differences however, in actual fact, they were far more similar than either cared to admit.

x

Morning sunlight was pouring through the paned window horizontally, illuminating the dust particles floating in the dormitory air and making the bed sheets glow whiter than usual. The wooden flooring seemed several shades lighter and the curtains surrounding James Potter's bed glistened.

The boy in question was fast asleep on his back, snoring lightly with one arm wrapped around his girlfriend, holding her waist protectively. Lily lay on her side, facing the window and observing the view through the gap in the scarlet hangings - it was different from that side of the castle; she was able to see more of the grounds rather than just Dumbledore's study.

A peaceful smile crept onto her face and she rolled onto her back, blinking at the change in light.

"Morning." James muttered, looking up and smirking.

"Hey." She propped herself up onto one elbow, letting her hair fall over one shoulder in a red waterfall of shimmering silk.

"Good sleep?"

"I've had worse." She smiled and he grinned.

"Merlin...this is amazing."

"What?"

"This-" He waved towards her absently before using the same hand to rub the sleep from his eyes "Waking up with you there. Even if you _do_ take up all the fucking room..."

She rolled her eyes "Nice, Potter. I meant to leave after - y'know...but I fell asleep."

"I don't mind." He smiled, trailing a finger across her jaw. His smile split into a devilish grin and he winked, suddenly flipping her over so that she was lay beneath him, hands on either side of her head trapped by his.

"Lily..."

"James..."

He bent down so that he was speaking directly into her lower ear, his warm breath brushing against her neck "I have to leave now..."

"Now?" She frowned "It's Saturday morning!"

"It's Quidditch, baby." He kissed her jaw, along the same line that his finger had ran along just moments before until his mouth met hers.

She took advantage of this, kissing him back slowly and running her tongue across her bottom lip. Feeling it, he groaned softly and gave in, releasing her hands and allowing them to knot themselves into his hair.

"_Fucking hell." _He growled, moving his hips down as her legs wrapped themselves around his waist.

"You started it." She smirked, feeling the change in his boxers press against her lower stomach.

He ignored this, kissing her neck and running a hand over the top of her black knickers "I've always preferred these on the floor."

"Shame." She tilted her head to one side and shifted so that she was sitting up "You have to go to Quidditch."

James shook his head "I detest you, Lily Evans. Do you know that?"

She smiled, leaning forward to kiss him lightly on the lips "Nope...you don't."

"No, I do." He responded, climbing out of the bed.

Lily laughed and followed him "Where are my clothes?"

He turned around and grinned "I don't know."

"Fine." She shrugged, picking up a shirt from the floor "I'll just wear this."

"Fine." He smirked "But you should know - that's Peter's."

"Oh God!" She pulled it off "Who do you not keep your clothes in drawers or something?"

He laughed, walking over and pulling her towards his body by the waist "Because we're _boys_."

She rolled her eyes and kissed him "Seriously - where are my clothes?"

"Here." He reached behind him and threw her a white vest and a pair of jeans "Although I'd prefer it if you didn't put them on."

She raised an eyebrow "What - so I'll just sit here in my underwear while you go to Quidditch waiting for Peter to come up and find me?"

James laughed "That would make my entire _life_."

"Or Sirius?"

This sobered him up fairly quickly. He looked at her evenly and said "Get dressed."

Chuckling, Lily pulled on the clothes "Can I borrow some socks please?"

He threw a pair towards her - they were fluffy with pink and navy blue stripes.

"Wormtail's idea of a Christmas gift." He explained, seeing Lily's expression.

She said nothing but pulled them on as he disappeared into the adjoining bathroom.

A few minutes later he emerged, jet black hair dripping wet and smelling of toothpaste, a white towel wrapped around his waist.

Lily looked at him for a moment, absorbing the shape of his arms, his chest, his abdomen.

James winked at her as he ran a hand through his hair, messing it up even more than it already had been.

Lily waved her wand absently and snatched the toothbrush that had just appeared out of the air, smiling slightly. She left the bedroom to brush her teeth in a far untidier bathroom than that of her own.

"Why do the house elves not clean your bathroom?"

James grinned "We stopped them from coming into the dorm in fourth year - we started to have too much _stuff_ lying around that could get us into a fair bit of trouble."

Lily shook her head in dismay but James simply smiled, pulling on a t-shirt.

"Ready?" Lily asked.

"Yup." He answered, ducking under the bed for his broomstick "Let's go."

The pair walked down the stairs and into the common room. Several second year girls began to giggle and blush at the thought of what their Head Students had been up to and James smirked, turning to his girlfriend.

"Thank you for an _amazing_ night, Lily dear."

Lily laughed, hitting his chest but then standing up on her tip-toes to kiss him lightly "Don't fall off your broom."

He snorted, responding sarcastically "Yeah - that's likely."

Lily rolled her eyes, kissed him once again and, as he disappeared, turned to see who was in the Common Room.

Dorcas Meadows and Mary Macdonald, the two other girls she shared a dormitory with, were sat on the spindly wooden desks, winking and raising their eyebrows suggestively. Lily laughed at them and left the room, not wishing to hold a conversation with two people who had also slept with her boyfriend.

Lily climbed through the portrait hole and followed the corridors down until she found herself outside, on the stretch of grass near Herbology. The air was bright and clear, if a little chilly, but sunlight still shone over the grounds, making the dew on the grass glisten.

She walked down towards the path that split part of the forest in two and followed it through so that she was on the outskirts of the lake. With nothing better to do, she began to walk until she found something that made her start.

A figure was sat about two hundred yards away, hunched over by the water and shaking in the way that only comes with silent tears. Curious, she wondered who it was and then suddenly, with what felt like a painful blow to the stomach she realised she recognised the tatty clothes, the pale brown hair and the battered shoes.

The person, looking so distraught, was Remus Lupin.

x

Right - I'm away until next Saturday so until then you'll have to cope with this ;D

Review please!


	25. The Soft Brown Eyes of a Haunted Monster

It was his eyes that gave it away.

In all the years she'd seen him hurt or upset, Lily could always measure the seriousness of the situation through Remus Lupin's eyes. Having been fairly good friends from their first year at Hogwarts, she had watched him through both highs and lows - she'd seen the soft brown irises dance with happiness, joy and admiration but also echo loss, desperation and loneliness.

With a slight shock, as she kneeled beside him and his eyes met hers, Lily realised that she'd never seen them look so heartbroken. It was as if something had twisted and broken inside of him - as if that something had then gone on to transform into a bitter, empty being and then taken over his soul, destroying every bit of happiness that had ever passed through. His eyes, though, were the worst. Surrounded by dark circles, they seemed to mirror every single molecule of pain and anguish that everybody in the world has ever felt.

She wrapped her arms around him, holding him tightly and he gave in, resting his forehead on her shoulder and letting the tears fall in thick, fast droplets over his cheekbones and down his face.

After several minutes of this, he pulled away, ran a hand through his hair in a way that made Lily wonder why he hadn't told James about whatever had got him in such a state, and then lifted his head to look at her.

"Go away."

"No." She replied instantly, as if the idea was ludicrous "I'm not going to make you tell me, but it might help if-"

"I'm a monster." His voice was clear, certain and did not suit the redness of his face, the puffiness of his eyes.

"Remus-"

"You don't understand" He snapped "Nobody does."

Lily paused for a moment, watching the anger disappear, as quickly as it had arrived, a fresh wave of sadness rolling over his expression "I'm sorry." He shook his head "I'm - It was awful Lily." He bit his lip and allowed his shoulders to sag as he "I'm a Monster. I tore apart half a house last night - I'm dangerous. I need to leave -"

"No - don't be ridiculous." Her voice was just as defined as she reached out to take his hand "You are not a monster. The boy I know, who's sat in front of me, one of my best friends in the world...is definitely not a monster."

He let out a sigh but Lily stopped him "You can't control it, Remus - you don't want it and would definitely stop it if that was a possibility - I know you would. You don't use it to harm others and, moreover, you have no inclination of ever doing so. These people calling themselves Death Eaters, following Voldemort...Remus, _they_ are the monsters. The people who kill muggles for a joke, the ones who know full well what they're about to do and just do it anyway - _those_ are the monsters. _You_ are not...you never will be."

He looked up and, somehow, felt much lighter - as if a huge weight had been lifted from his chest. With a much gentler sigh, he met Lily' gaze and nodded.

"Okay?" She raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah...okay." And then, much to his horror, his throat felt incredibly thick, as if he would start to cry again - but this time with gratitude for how much light she had managed to bring to the darkest situation he'd ever encountered.

Without another word, he pulled her slim frame towards his and held on to her tightly, until the lump in his throat had vanished and he could speak safely once again "Thank you. You have no idea how much that...just, thank you."

Lily smiled slightly, squeezing his hand before letting it go "Any time - I'm always here."

"Thank you."

"If you don't mind though - why do you never share any of this with the other three?"

Remus thought for a moment, kicking a pebble lightly across the bank "I've had some pretty bad moods in the company of James, Sirius and Peter," He replied, almost cautiously, as they stood up and began to walk "But...they've never actually seen me cry."

Lily nodded, saying nothing.

"They've seen me stressed, worried, hurt...even upset but I can't let myself cry in front of them." He looked at the ground "I already come across as being so much weaker-"

"Rubbish." Lily shook her head "No - you have more sense than Sirius, a far better magical ability than Peter - obviously - and as for James...Remus - you're just as good as all of them - just as strong. They aren't illegal animagi because they pity you - they do it because they care about you and they need a way to distribute all their trouble-causing, rule-breaking, bullying needs in the most impressive way without hurting other people...It took me a while to realise that but...once I did, I understood it instantly. They certainly care about you, Remus and feel bad that you have this _awful_ issue that's incurable...but they don't think less of you. hey don't even look down on _Peter_, never mind you."

He was quiet for a moment, before tilting his head to one side "You think?"

"I know."

He scratched the side of his head, a spot of already thinning hair above his left ear "Thank you...again. You have a way of seeing the best in people when-"

"No." She shook her head "I just see people as they are. Best bits, worst bits...all of them." She smiled warmly "You just have a lot of good inside you. That's why I used to despise James so much - he never used to have a lot of good inside him."

Remus smiled and they continued to walk in a comfortable silence for about half an hour.

His voice was gentle and calm as he broke the silence gently "I know you worry, too."

"I worry about a lot of things...to which are you referring?"

"James...and the fact he's slept with what must seem like half of the female population."

Lily said nothing, looking out across the expanse of grey water. A flesh coloured tentacle emerged on the horizon, splashing the still water before disappearing once more.

"He cares about you so much...in fact I'd say that - well, you have no need to worry." Remus smiled, shoving his hands into the pockets of his trousers "Apparently, none of the others even come close...in more ways than one."

"There are so many of them." Lily said softly, after a moment "They all seem to judge me - as if they're wondering and remembering the things he did with them..."

"There really aren't that many." He smiled "He used to act like there were more infront of Sirius and Peter...but he never had to impress or compete with me." He shrugged "Don't worry, Lily...there really is no need."

"Okay." She nodded as they emerged near the Quidditch stands, watching as the Gryffindor team landed.

James spotted them and jogged over "Hey - what are you two doing?"

"I'm stealing her." Remus responded, his expression deadly serious.

"Good luck, mate." James winked, wrapping an arm around Lily and kissing the top of her head. "Are either of you hungry? I'm starving."

"Yeah - I could eat." He smiled.

"Good- you look bloody awful."

"Bad night in the shack." He said lightly.

"Really?" James asked "You seemed alright the night before last."

"I'm fine..." Remus nodded, meeting Lily's gaze as she rested her head on James' shoulder "Much better now."

Lily smiled and the three began their ascent to the castle.

x

I know it's been ages but my internet wouldn't work when I got back from my holiday...hopefully you've enjoyed it - i tried to get the whole 'She had a way of seeing the beauty in others, even, and perhaps most especially, when that person couldn't see it in themselves' bit in there :-)

Please review...it will make me update faster ;)


	26. Birthday Surprise

The 27th March was a very good day for James Potter.

The house elves served all his favourite meals, he came top of the class in Transfiguration, second in Potions (beaten only by his girlfriend - much to Severus Snape's anguish), mastered a particularly dangerous move on his broom and even managed to convince Lily to skip her final lesson of the day - Ancient Runes - and join him down by the lake.

The 27th March also happened to be his birthday.

James was leaning against a large oak tree on the outskirts of the forest, Lily between his legs. It was the first really warm day of the year - James had his sleeves rolled up, his jumper abandoned on the floor and Lily was wearing ankle socks as opposed to tights.

Smirking slightly, James flicked Lily's top button in an efficient, swift movement and it unfastened, causing her to raise an eyebrow.

"Steady on, Potter - don't you want to wait until later for _that _part of your present?"

James chuckled roughly into her ear "Yeah - I think I could hang on. Room of requirement?"

"No." She shook her head, turning to face him "I think the Heads Bathroom - I fancy a bit of _excitement_."

"And nostalgia..." James laughed "You're a disgrace."

"You don't mind." She smiled.

"No, I certainly do _not_." He winked "Thanks for my present, by the way - it came into use at lunch time."

Lily winced "I dread to think what you were doing."

He laughed lightly, entwining his fingers with hers. Lily had bought him a small, leather bound blue book with no title but packed with detailed, animated illustrations, enlightening gifted Quidditch players with the knowledge needed to perfect every single trick possible on a broomstick.

At four o'clock, Remus, Frank and Alice joined them, followed by Peter, Marlene and Sirius The sat outside laughing, joking and eating and drinking - thanks to Sirius, who had taken a detour to the kitchens and then the Three Broomsticks on his way down.

"So, Peter my friend..." The young man in question began, a roguish grin on his face.

"What, Sirius?" Peter looked up from his meat pie, cheeks pink from the cider.

"How's the hunt going?"

The boy thought for a moment before his eyes widened "Oh - for girls?"

"Yes." Sirius chuckled.

"Well...I'm still a virgin."

"In all senses of the word?"

"Yes."

"Shame, mate." He turned to Remus "Even _you_ lost it in fifth year."_  
_

"The end of fifth year, I'd like to point out to everybody." He waved a hand around "Unlike my friends here," he gestured to James and Sirius "_I _was perfectly legal."

They all laughed and continued to talk with happy, amused smiles on their faces.

Unfortunately, however, nothing lasts forever and before long, clouds had gathered and huge, fat droplets of spring rain were falling from the sky.

Sirius waved his wand, causing the food, drink and checked picnic mats to vanish into the wet air as everybody attempted to stop the inevitable soaking they were due with cloaks and jumpers.

They all hurried through a gap in the forest trees, coming out onto the grassy expanse by Hagrid's hut.

"Kids - Sirius, James - Remus," The half-giant was waving towards the turrets and towers "Look!"

And they did look - they followed his gaze over the grey silhouette of the castle to where the clouds were dipping over the mountains.

And that's when they saw it.

Looking back, James regretted the way he acted. He should have tried to save more people from the overwhelming darkness that would come from a Dementor's kiss but he didn't - at that moment, he tried to save the only two people that, he knew, deep down, wouldn't go.

He tried to save Sirius and Lily.

"Go - get hep!" He screamed.

Alice and Frank nodded, rushing off and shouting as the beasts drew closer. There were easily hundreds of them - coming from the same direction, emerging out of the clouds like bats from a cave.

He began to feel his knees weaken, his voice break as he shouted. They were close - very close indeed and there were far too many. Remus and Peter had gone with Hagrid to the gates, Marlene had her wand out, swearing loudly at the fact she'd never been able to conjure Patronus charm as she struggled with the white wisps that evaporated in front of her.

Someone, and for as long as he lived James never knew who, shouted "He's here!" And it was _that_ that snapped him.

"Lily - run - go on - _please_ - he's not going to kill you!"

"No, he isn't." She said, her voice determined but her face pale.

James looked desperately to his best friend in the world "Sirius -"

His hair was dripping wet but his eyes were determined "Come on Prongs - we're doing it together," He gestured to Lily "And _she_ isn't going to leave."

James nodded, his jaw set as the three raised their wands, closed their eyes and screamed "_Expeto Patronum!"_

_Sirius though of the afternoon they'd shared, of James and Remus and Peter - all of whom he loved more than anything in the world. He thought of Marlene, of the way she looked when she laughed, the ways her eyes danced when she teased him and the way she was the only woman in the world to have any sort of control over him. He thought of the times he'd spent with his Marauders, sneaking out at night in his dog form. Finally, he felt that swoop of ecstasy that would be enough to save him._

_James thought of his family, growing up and laughing on a broomstick at the age of five. He thought of Sirius and their jokes, of Remus and his loyalty, of Peter and his companionship. He thought of Lily - of the way she looked when she saw him, the way her face brightened ever so slightly but enough to open a window in his chest and let sunlight pour in.. He thought of the way they played chess, the way she looked when confused and the fire in her eyes that time in the Library, the first time his lips had ever touched her own. Finally, he thought of her Patronus and the fact that he had to protect his doe - his soul mate._

_Lily thought of her sister, of Petunia who she loved despite everything. She thought of her beautiful parents and how much they truly meant to her. She thought of Marlene and Alice, her best friends in the world. She thought of Remus, and his dry sense of humour, __of Sirius, and all his jokes, _of Frank and his caring nature, even of Peter and the way he blushed around her. She thought of Severus, who she still cared about despite everything and of all the teachers who she'd grown to love over her seven years at Hogwarts. She thought then, of James. She thought of his eyes, his laugh, his sense of humour. She thought of the way he held her, the way he looked at her and the way he had his own individual way of dealing with everything. She thought of the way he was so unlike anybody she'd ever, and probably would ever, have the pleasure to meet and then, as she thought of all the moments they'd shared in less than two months, she realised how much he truly meant to her.

All at once, a huge, shaggy dog, a wild, stampeding stag and a delicate but determined doe appeared in the grey mist, storming through the midst of the awful, black creatures and holding them off.

As Albus Dumbledore appeared, he took the smallest of moments to look at his three, incredibly gifted students, and hope that they would continue with such determination and pride for the rest of their lives.

_x_

__Please review!


	27. The Worst Kind of Danger

"He was there James."

Lily's voice echoed hauntingly down the empty, darkened corridor. They were sat on wooden chairs that resided on either side of the entrance to Dumbledore's office.

"I know."

"And we escaped."

"Yeah." James rubbed one eye and looked sideways at the red haired girl, before sighing softly and walking over to her. He wrapped a strong arm around her delicate shoulders and pulled her head towards his chest. She inhaled the familiar smell of burning wood and immediately felt her breathing and panicked heartbeat steady as he began to stroke her hair.

"I just can't-" She shook her head.

"I know." James breathed, "He won't hurt you. Don't worry."

"How can I not-"

"Because I won't let him, Lily." He shook his head, his jaw set "I'd die before I let him touch you."

In shock, Lily looked up. Emerald met hazel for the millionth time but something had changed. Something had clicked. Neither of them, however, acknowledged it.

Lily simply nodded, squuezed his hand and smiled "Thank you."

He shrugged "It's true."

Nothing more needed to be said though, because at that moment McGonagall appeared. She gesturing, with a concerned look on her face, to the wall behind the stone Gargoyle that had just leapt to one side.

As James and Lily both knew it would, the wall split into two revealing a spiralling stone staircase.

Lily stepped forward first and James followed. They were almost inside when McGonagall spoke, her voice strong and steady.

"Potter, Evans."

The pair turned to face their head of house. A muscle in her jaw twitched and she nodded "I'm proud of what you two, and of course Mr Black did this evening."

"Thank you, Professor." Lily responded as James smiled.

"Proffessor Dumbledore didn't feel the need to take all three of you away from Mr Lupin - the Dementor's affect upon somebody with such a..._condition_ must be unbearable. Don't worry if Poppy makes him stay in for a few nights." She observed the two for a moment "You should be immensely pleased with yourselves - few eighteen year olds could do what you have today. Speaking of which -" A slight smile fell across her face "Happy Birthday Mr Potter."

He laughed lightly and winked at his favourite teacher "Thanks, Professor."

The woman shook her head before walking away.

James took Lily's hand, squeezed it slightly and smiled "I love her - she's great."

"Only because she's the only teacher in the school to actually like you and Sirius, never mind put up with all of your shit."

James laughed "Exactly. Besides," he smirked "I'm pretty sure the guy we're about to see might like me ever so slightly, too."

Lily shook her head but smiled as she reached out to knock on the large oak door.

"Come in."

They did as instructed and sat down on two large armchairs that Lily had never seen in Dumbledore's study before.

He smiled slightly, although it didn't meet his eyes "I thought the pair of you may rather need a little comfort after the events of today."

James frowned "Sir - what exactly-"

"As much as I regret to say it - I must tell the truth...it is often preferable to lies, I have always thought." He clasped his hands together on the desk, surveying James and Lily over his familiar pair of half-moon spectacles "This evening, at approximately nine-twenty four, Lord Voldemort attempted to launch an attack on this school."

There was a heavy silence for several minutes before Lily spoke. Her voice was quiet as she asked: "Why?"

"The definite reason, so far, is unclear - we can only guess..."

"You must have an idea though?" James pushed.

Dumbledore sighed "Yes. And, sadly, my ideas are, more often than not, correct."

"So?"

"I believe it has something to do with the fact that _you__ two _were in the grounds this evening."

"_What_?" Lily exclaimed, her voice higher than normal "You mean - he wants _us_?"

"Surely," Dumbledore said "You must have realised that you are an extremely gifted pair of young sorcerers. I have no doubt that Professor McGonagall has already told you how few eighteen year olds could pull of what you and Mr Black did a few hours ago - especially with as much success."

"But why does he want us-"

"You're a threat. He knows you won't join his army of so-called _Death Eaters_," Dumbledore winced slightly at the nickname "And so you are both a huge threat - even more so while you're in a relationship." He paused slightly "James proved that this evening."

Lily didn't ask how - instead, she ran a hand through her hair and took a deep breath "So he was trying to kill us?"

"No - not by any means..." Dumbledore paused "Last week - I'm sure you both saw it in _The Daily Prophet, _a large number of Dementors were said to have disappeared from Azkaban." He shook his head slightly "The only wizard powerful enough to master this feat is Lord Voldemort."

"So he took the Dementors and what - _set them on us_?" James frowned "Did he think _they'd _kill us?"

"No."

It was Lily however, who spoke - not Dumbledore. She was looking into thin air, disbelief and horror across her pale face.

"Miss Evans?"

"It was a test wasn't it?" She asked, turning to the white haired man.

"A test?" James' eyebrows were furrowed together.

"Yeah." She ran a hand through her hair and looked at her boyfriend "He wanted to know what he was dealing with and - and we showed him. We _proved _to him how good we are - what we can do and...and he saw our Patronuses. Now he must know...about us."

"Good - but you're wrong on that account." Dumbledore smiled bitterly "No - he must have already known about your relationship before he launched his little test."

"How do you know that?"

"Why else would the pair of you be together in the grounds?"

"Oh god...so he's known for-"

"A while." James finished.

"Yes." Dumbledore nodded "When you leave this school, the pair of you are in, possibly, the worst kind of danger. I can only apologise."

"For what?" James asked "What've you done wrong?"

"If I hadn't picked you both as Head Students, maybe he wouldn't have recognised your talents so obviously-"

"Don't be stupid." James cut him off.

"Yeah - that's ridiculous." Lily agreed "He would have found out anyway and, if not us, it would be somebody else's danger-"

"And I'd rather worry about myself than one of my friends or -" He glanced ever so slightly at Lily "Somebody that I care about."

"We'll do what we can to keep ourselves safe but - if it comes down to it -" Lily's voice rang with determination as she looked her Headmaster straight in the eye "We'll fight and we'll face him."

"A pair of true Gryffindors." Dumbledore smiled "You may now leave, I expect you'll be wanting to see how Mr Lupin is doing?"

Lily and James nodded, stood up and left the room. As they came out past the Gargoyle, James stopped, grabbed Lily by the waist, pulled her swiftly towards her and kissed her. After a few minutes, he pulled away but wrapped his arms around her tightly - he'd meant what he'd said earlier - he wasn't wiling to let _anything_ touch her until he was dead and could not protect her any longer. But until then - and he swore it to himself - he would do everything in his power to protect her from anybody wishing to harm her in any way at all.

Why?

Because James Potter, although he wasn't entirely sure of it yet, had fallen in love.

x


	28. Who's Home?

One week had passed since the 27th of March. Everybody was fine - Remus had left the hospital the following morning and the rest of the school were perfectly well, if slightly shaken.

It was a rainy Thursday evening that greeted Lily, as she sat with her head resting against the back of a large red arm chair in the Common Room, a book in her hands.

The Portrait Hole opened and a familiar teenage boy walked in. As always, his raven hair was messy and his shirt sleeves were rolled up. Something was different though - as he came to sit beside Lily, resting on the edge of her chair arm, she noticed his eyes. Despite the dreary day, they were bright and dancing - more alive than usual, the golden flecks noticeably more prominent.

"What are you reading?"

"Does it matter?"

"I'm interested."

"Sherlock Holmes?"

"Who's home?"

"_Sherlock Holmes_."

"Oh yeah - and who's he?"

"A detective."

"Oh yeah? Like that Pie-rot guy that you rave about-"

"_Poirot_, James...yes."

"Oh." He thought for a moment "And Miss Marbles."

"_Marple_."

"Is he by the same Author, then - this Sherlock character?"

"No - this isn't Agatha Christie."

"Why do you read it?"

She raised an eyebrow and flicked over a page "Why not?"

James shrugged "You know during Easter?"

"Yes?"

"Would you like to come and stay at my house?"

Lily froze slightly and looked up, meeting his gaze "That's quite a random thing to come out with."

"Not really - all these murders take place in big, old houses and my house is old." He smiled sweetly "My parents would love it if you said yes."

Lily frowned "Wouldn't I be taking up space?"

James smirked slightly, as if she'd made a joke without realising "I'm sure we'll squeeze you in."

"Will Sirius be there?"

"No I've told him to fuck off to Moony's."

Lily bit her lip and James tilted his head to one side.

"What is it?"

"Your parents have only met me once, James."

"So?"

She smiled, despite the nagging feeling in her stomach "I wasn't exactly looking my best - you'd just fallen three miles out of the air, I was worried-"

"Ah, so you _were_ worried." He smirked.

"Of course I was worried!" She snapped.

"Okay, okay...I'm sorry." He smiled slightly, lifting himself up to kiss her forehead.

She shook her head and sighed "What if they don't like me?"

"They'll love you - they already admire you."

"Why?"

James ran a hand through his hair, a distant smile crossing his face "You're the only girl in the world, besides my Mother, who has ever had any control over me. After years of talking about you, and Sirius exaggerating - obviously, they've kind of picked up on that."

"Years?" She raised an eyebrow.

"Well I've _always_ had a bit of a thing for you...and you're hot." He shrugged.

Lily laughed, pulling him down by his loose tie and kissing him "Yes, I'd love to go to your house."

"Great." He grinned, pulling her back.

After checking that nobody was in the room, she ran her tongue over his top lip and he willingly allowed her entrance. Smiling against his mouth, she tugged on his bottom lip with her teeth and bit down softly.

"Evans..." He growled, grasping her waist and pulling her against him.

"Ooh, calm down Potter." she grinned, running a hand through her long red hair and smiling as she looked up at him. Her own eyes were dancing now, bright and brilliant "We have Head duties to do."

"For _fucks_ sake." He groaned, kicking the wall.

Lily laughed and headed out through the Portrait Hole. After a few seconds of deep breathing, James followed her, completely worked up, his cheeks flushed.

They walked down through the castle in silence, not communicating until they were in a deserted corridor on the east side of the castle. James suddenly sighed, pushing her up against the hard stone wall with a soft thud, one hand on the left side of her head, the other holding her waist.

"Lily..."

"Yes James?" She asked innocently, biting her lip once more and raising an eyebrow.

He smirked, running a cool finger up the inside of her thigh, sending shivers down her spine. Her eyelids fluttered as he skirted under her knicker-line.

"Alright there?"

She pulled him towards her so that there was no gap between them, pressing herself against his tall figure as closely as was possible "Fine - you?"

"I'm - I'm not bad." He smirked.

"Oh good."

They looked at each other for a second and then the teasing stopped. He lifted her up so her feet were off the ground and she was straddling him. Hands lost in her boyfriend's hair, and tongue playing tricks in his mouth, Lily Evans smiled as she was carried into the nearest empty broom cupboard.

x


	29. Potter's House

Easter came around fairly quickly that year and the pressure of upcoming exams was worsened by the shaken state of the students. Each and every one of them were expecting Lord Voldemort to appear during ever class, every revision session, every trip to the bathroom.

The train to Kings Cross had no fewer than seven Auror's on board, all, apart from one, wearing tense expressions upon their faces. A man with matted hair somewhere between sandy blonde and grey, one electric blue eye and the other brown with only have one leg was stood outside their compartment looking perfectly calm, if a little bored.

"You're Moody - aren't you?" Sirius asked, sticking his head out into the corridor.

The man surveyed him momentarily, before nodding and making a noise in the back of his throat "And you must be one of the Black brothers. Sirius, I'd wager."

Sirius grinned and held out a hand "The best of the two, I can assure you."

A hint of a smile crossed the man's face "Alastor Moody." He limped into their compartment, looking around "You must be Marlene McKinnon."

"Heard the stories, have you?" She smiled.

"From your Parents?" He raised an oddly shaped eyebrow "Of course."

"All bad I hope."

"Naturally."

She grinned as he turned to Alice and Frank "Fortescue and Longbottom, eh?" He nodded slightly, as if to himself "Augusta will be impressed."

Frank smiled, wrapping an arm around Alice's waist "I wouldn't care if she wasn't."

Alice squeezed his hand as Moody turned to Remus. He had a strange expression on his mangled face, almost pitiful.

"Remus Lupin?"

"Yes, Sir. That's me."

"Yes, yes I thought it would be."

Remus didn't have to guess what he was referring to. Obviously, the tatty clothes, the grey circle's under his eyes and the fact he was rather underweight had given his true identity away.

"Pettigrew?"

Peter held out his hand and squeaked "Nice to meet you."

Moody raised an eyebrow, but no more was said because he had turned to look at the last two people in the compartment.

"James Potter and Lily Evans..." His voice drifted off quietly and another look fell across his features. He was watching them with a kind of admiration, sadness and shock.

"That's us." James smiled, holding out a hand that Moody shook.

"The pair of you are in a lot of danger - I dare say Dumbledore's already told you that, though."

"We'll deal with whatever happens when it does." Lily said, shrugging "There's nothing else we can do."

"Of course Potter was going to be brave - with Parents like his - but _you,_ Evans...you are a surprise."

Lily smiled "I've heard that from a few people."

x

For the rest of the journey, Moody sat with them, answering questions about his life as an Auror and the many fights he'd gotten into throughout his career. When the train pulled up in Kings Cross, he limped out with an irritated look on his face, as if his job had interrupted a good conversation.

"What a guy." Sirius said, in awe.

"Yeah - he's got some pretty good stories." Remus nodded.

As the climbed off the train, they all hugged as the realisation that there was far more chance of them never seeing each other again than there ever had been before, hit them.

"Be careful." James told Sirius, slapping him on the back with one hand as he hugged Marlene with the other "And don't have too much fun without me."

"You two, too - I enjoyed our little heroic threesome the other week, don't have another without me."

Lily laughed and hugged him "I'm actually going to miss you, Sirius."

Sirius grinned, waving at James "Did you hear that!"

"I heard." James.

"You want to come and stay with me, instead?"

"No, I'll pass thanks." Lily laughed, moving to hug Alice.

Sirius looked put out but reached out to hug Marlene, muttering "I'll see you soon."

Marlene pulled away and looked at him before kissing him on the cheek "Yeah, you will."

Remus hugged Lily and James while Peter hugged Sirius, despite the fact he was staying with him.

"Right, come on." James clapped his hands together, smiling slightly at the confused expression on Sirius' face.

Lily squeezed Marlene before waving to everybody. She took her boyfriend's hand and allowed herself to be pulled into the suffocating experience somewhere between time and space.

After a few moments, she landed with her feet firmly on the floor and James steadied her. She looked around and saw that she was on a busy street somewhere in London.

"You live in London?"

"No." James smiled, gesturing to the battered looking, faded blue Mini Cooper beside them "Get in."

Lily's eyebrows rose so high they almost disappeared "Sorry? Get in? In _that_?"

"Yes." He smiled.

"No."

"Why?" He asked innocently.

She looked at him as if he was stupid "I've seen you ride a broomstick. There is no _way_ I'm getting into that."

He laughed "It's my car!"

"Can you even drive?"

"Yes!"

"Do you have a licence?"

"Of sorts."

Lily crossed her arms "No."

"No?"

"No. And as soon as we get to your house I'm writing to my parents and telling them to _get off the roads_."

"Writing to your parents, eh?" He asked, an amused look on his face.

"Yes."

"When you get to my house?" He walked to driver's side, folding his arms on the roof of the car and resting his chin on them.

"Yes."

"And how, exactly, do you plan on getting there?"

Lily opened her mouth to argue but realised he was right.

"You can't apparate - you don't know where you're going and _I'm_ driving. Threaten me as much as you like - turn me into a toad, if you wish, but you're going to have to get in the car at some point."

He opened the small door and climbed inside, a smug look on his face. Sighing, Lily copied him and dropped into the strangely comfortable seat, inhaling the air that had been infused with James' scent - the leather from two Quaffles on the back seat, his aftershave and the unexplainable smell of fire and burning wood.

"Trust me." He laughed, reversing out of the tight spot with barely a glance behind him. They drove out of the city; busy, grey roads became rich, green fields and the black, intimidating buildings became tall, beautiful oak trees.

To his credit, James was a good driver, despite the fact he pushed the speed limits slightly.

"Okay - I'm sorry."

"What for?" He smirked, pulling out onto another winding country lane.

"You're a good driver."

"I know." He smiled "But thanks."

Lily rolled her eyes and rolled down the window as a ray of amber sunlight poured into the car "This is nice."

"Yeah..it just gets unpleasant when you reach London; the traffic's a nightmare." He paused for a moment "Can you drive, Evans?"

Lily paused for a moment "I've never tried."

"Oh so...you couldn't do this?" He asked innocently, raising an eyebrow.

Lily punched him in the leg and he laughed, turning on the radio. The song 'American Pie' by Don McClean was playing.

"Muggle vehicle...muggle radio station...are you _sure_ your Parents are magic?"

James chuckled "Fairly."

Lily smiled, leaning backwards and closing her eyes as the heat from the sun warmed her body.

After half an hour, James nudged her "We're nearly there."

Lily rubbed her eyes - the scenery had changed again. They were still in the country, there was no mistaking that, but the fields had disappeared and in there place there were forests thick with Pine trees. Towering miles above the car, the huge furnishings grew from damp, soily ground. The sun had set, merely a pink strip hovering over the mass of trees.

"Oh my God - where do you _live_?"

James laughed "What do you mean?"

"There are no houses for miles..."

"I know." He shrugged "Growing up, it was pretty dull. Good for Quidditch, though."

"How close are we?" Lily asked, pulling out a mirror and glancing at her reflection in a concerned manner.

"We're here." He said, turning a corner.

Until the day she died, Lily Evans swore that, at the moment, her heart had momentarily stopped. For, facing her, out of nowhere, had appeared a huge estate. A pair of wrought iron gates, twice her height, came together to form an image of a Phoenix in the centre. On each side were two magnificent stone lions that turned their heads and roared appreciatively at James, who waved.

James beeped his horn and the gates swung open, revealing a drive way at least half a mile long. Lily couldn't see the house for the vast amount of pine trees in the grounds, but could tell that it was going to be impressive.

She wasn't disappointed.

The drive way spread out into a semicircle, the flat edge of which was home to, hands down, _the_ biggest house Lily had ever seen.

An Edwardian mansion, complete with stone balconies, pillars and a turret, the Potter's home reminded Lily very much of the country houses her parents used to take herself and Petunia to look around at weekends.

"What do you think?" James bit back a smile "Do you think we'll be able to squeeze you in?"

Lily's mouth was almost touching the floor as they climbed out of the car "James!"

"What?" He chuckled, opening the boot and pulling out the two wooden trunks.

"I knew you were rich but this is..this is...you have...is that - oh my god..."

James smiled "You okay?"

"How do I look?" She checked her reflection in the car window and James rolled his eyes, reached for her waist and kissed her lightly on the mouth.

"Perfect." He tilted his head to one side "You always look perfect."

Lily blushed slightly "Won't they think I'm a bit-"

"They won't think you're anything but incredible, being the only person I've ever brought home."

Lily bit her lip and James reached for her hand, waving his wand at the trunks so they floated behind them. He lead her up the stone steps to the front door and gestured to a brick beside Lily's head.

"See that dint in the wall?"

"Yeah..."

"I crashed into it on a broom when I was six."

Imagining this, Lily laughed and suddenly felt much more at ease as she followed him through the beautiful white door.

x


	30. Girlfriend

The hallway itself was incredible. Painted cream, a very expensive, crystal chandelier hung from the ceiling and a full length, antique and gleaming glass mirror held its place on the left hand side wall. On the back wall, a painting of a vase of beautiful, bright yellow daffodils hung beautifully. As James closed the door, the flowers rustled slightly in the breeze.

"How do we get out?" Lily asked, looking for a door.

James smiled, walked past the mirror and turned to the left. Lily copied him, now facing a pale, wooden door that she hadn't noticed.

"How did-"

"Magic." He laughed "A bit pointless, really - I doubt burglars would use the front door."

Lily smiled, following him through into a corridor with more paintings on the wall and a huge window at one end, taking up the entire end of the corridor. Dotted around were various doors and, about half way along, a gap amongst the wall where the corridor continued.

"That's amazing!" Lily exclaimed, moving over to the window that was almost twice her height.

"You think?" James smiled "It used to be a wall."

"Really?" She frowned "What happened?"

"Myself and Sirius." He bit back a smirk "We almost killed the House Elf, poor thing."

Lily froze, her fingers millimetres away from the glass. After a few seconds, she turned slowly to stare at James, her lips parted slightly.

"What?"

"What did you just say?"

"I said we almost killed the House-"

"_You have House Elves_?" She shrieked, her eyes wide "Fucking hell, James!"

"_Elf_." He smiled "Just one - Schubert."

Lily raised her eyebrows sarcastically "Oh - only _one_? Well, that _must_ drop you down into working class-"

James smirked, holding her wrists and pulling her towards him, kissing her gently.

Reluctantly, Lily let herself kiss him back. She didn't know what the matter was - it wasn't _his _fault that he was beyond what anyone could possibly call rich.

"Yes Master?"

Lily almost jumped into the previous week at the squeaky little voice coming from beside her.

James laughed "Oh - Schu! Hey!" He grinned down at the crinkly little creature with huge ocre eyes.

"Did Master James call me?"

"No I was just telling Lily about you - Oh!" He gestured to his startled girlfriend "This is Lily!"

Schubert smiled and bowed so low his nose brushed the floor "Miss Lily! If you need anything it will be Schubert's biggest pleasure to help with-"

"Thank you so much." Lily smiled warmly and James could swear he saw the small creature blush.

"Master James is very lucky."

"Yeah." James winked at Lily "He certainly is."

Lily shook her head, smiling as Schubert disappeared on the spot. She looked around as he lead her through the corridors of the house. Despite herself, Lily couldn't get rid of the nagging feeling in her stomach - something was rather strange about this - as if she'd been here in a dream, or something.

James took her hand and lead her through a magnificent library that she was eager to explore, down a set of wooden stairs and then along a very narrow corridor. When he stopped, they were facing a carved wooden door and James was wearing a rather guilty look on his face.

"Now - I don't want you to shout at me because, _ technically_, I never actually lied and, honestly, I'm surprised you haven't already realised-"

"Realised _what_, exactly?" Lily bit her lip and James scratched the back of his neck.

"Please don't be upset."

"_Why_ would I be upset? Do you not live her or something-"

James shook his head and bent down to kiss her "No, I live here." He grimaced "That might be the issue."

"What do you-"

James cut her off, nodding behind her to the, now open, door. Cautiously, Lily stepped inside and frowned.

She recognised this place - from the expensive wooden furnishings to the brass taps over the sink. She'd seen the dusty wine bottles before and touched the kitchen counter. But she _hadn't_ been there before - how could she have been? This was _James Potter's_house. How on earth had she ever seen the inside of James Potter's house before?"

Suddenly, and for the second time in fifteen minutes, Lily froze.

_Of course she recognised this place._

_She'd been inside it on New Year's Eve_.

"Oh my God."

James grimaced.

"You live _here_? _This_ is your home?"

"Technically, I never said it wasn't."

"You told me people you know live here."

"I know my parents."

"Oh my _God_."

James stepped forwards, trying to see through the disbelief that covered her face.

"Lily?"

"_This_ is your house?" She shook her head "That amazing ballroom, all those fancy paintings that I knew I'd seen before and...and..." She paused, frowning "Why are the walls a different colour? They were red, I'm sure they were-"

"The house changes with the seasons." He gestured back up the hall "The painting of the daffodils when you first came in changes with the walls - at Christmas it was mistletoe, in autumn the walls go orange and yellow like the leaves and the picture turns into an acorn. In spring, we have blues and greens and the picture shows daffodils."

Despite the shock, Lily couldn't deny that this was impressive.

"That must have been expensive."

James shrugged "Dad knows a painter."

Lily rolled her eyes "Of course he does."

There was a moment, then. A moment filled with exasperation and wonder. A moment filled of awe and surprise, humour and desperation.

The moment ended when James tilted his head to one side and said, quietly "I'm sorry for lying to you."

Lily's gaze was steady as she said "So you're admitting to lying, now?"

He bit his lip and she allowed herself a smile, walking over and wrapping an arm around is neck, the other running down the zip on his jacket.

"James Potter..." She shook her head in exasperation.

James smiled back, wrapping both arms around her waist and kissing her softly on the forehead as a ray of orange setting sunlight burst through the window.

Suddenly, above their heads there was a loud bang and the house shook for a moment.

"What on-" Lily started, but he just rolled his eyes.

"_James_!" A female's voice rang through the large house and James crinkled his nose.

Nervously, Lily followed him as he turned around, leading her up through the house a different way.

"Where are you?" He shouted, craning his neck.

A door opened and Dorcas Potter appeared, surveying her son with an exasperated look on her face.

"Did you, er-"

"Fall over these?" She asked, gesturing behind her to the two wooden trunks "Yes, actually."

"Sorry Mum." James said, biting back a smile.

The woman rolled her eyes but stepped forward to hug her son tightly "Are you okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine."

"No more trouble at school?"

"There's always trouble at school."

Mrs Potter nodded, biting her lip "Yes, I suppose there is."

James nodded and then tilted his head to the side where Lily was stood, making the woman's eyes widen in shock.

"Oh Merlin - Lily!" She pushed James to one side, hugging her guest "I completely forgot you were coming with the trunks and James being...James." She laughed and held Lily at arm's length "You look a lot healthier than you did the last time I saw you."

Lily laughed "I'm really sorry about that - I must have come across as being very odd."

"No, you just looked worried - which is perfectly understandable-"

"Yes," said another voice from behind them all "Anyone would be worried in that situation - imagine having to live with the fear that James might actually wake up and insist on working with you..."

"Dad!" James grinned, wrapping both arms around his father.

"You weren't lying then?"

"About what?"

Mr Potter gestured to Lily, smirking "She's actually here."

"No, actually - it's Sirius with Polyjuice potion."

His parents both stalled for a minute, as if this was something their son would actually do.

"I'm not Sirius." Lily laughed "Trust me."

"Oh, I do." Mrs Potter smiled "If you were Sirius, by now you would have made some kind of inappropriate comment about having breasts."

Lily laughed and James rolled his eyes.

"This is really weird."

"What is?"

"You already know each other."

"We met her for five minutes in the Hospital Wing, James." Mr Potter reminded him "We're hardly best pals."

Lily laughed and James grinned "In that case, then-" He wrapped an arm around Lily's waist "This is my girlfriend."

They both laughed, rolling their eyes and Mrs Potter smiled "Very nice to meet you."

"You too."

"Merlin, you're an idiot." Mr Potter rolled his eyes at James, who shoved him lightly.

"Is anyone hungry?"

"Starving." James responded immediately.

"Well take Lily to her room and I'll get Schubert to make something, then..."

"Great, James grinned, directing Lily up a very fancy staircase that she recognised from her first visit to the house and up again to the top floor. He lead her over a soft carpet to a door that opened into a beautiful pale green bedroom.

One wall was covered in golden flowers that matched the curtains ad the sheets on the four poster bed. All the furnishings, from the writing desk to the mirror and the wardrobe were made of solid mahogany and a large fireplace held itself grandly opposite the bed. A large bay window, a smaller version of the one in the ballroom, took up one side of the room, looking out over the magnificent grounds.

"Bloody hell..." Lily looked around, stroking the polished wood of the dresser and looking at James in awe "This is incredible."

"Yeah..." He ran a hand through his hair and smiled, watching her "This is nice."

"What is?"

"Seeing you in my house."

"Yeah - well it's not too bad being here, either."

James winked and Lily raised an eyebrow "Thanks for the introduction, by the way."

He laughed, pulling her towards him by the waist and resting his chin on top of her hair "Yeah well, I've waited one hell of a long time to be able to introduce you to my parents as my girlfriend."

Lily smiled and said nothing, wrapping her arms around him tightly and, just for a moment, letting herself relish in the pure joy that was slowly taking over every atom in her body.

x


	31. The Only Guest

Right, so basically I know the last update and this one have taken forever and I have no excuse apart from going back to school and splitting up with my boyfriend - I didn't want the story to go all depressing so I just didn't write anything.

Anyway, I'm thinking this story will be 50 chapters which is really quite long but there's lots that I'd like to fit in so yeah...stick with me and keep reviewing please :) And I'm so sorry updates are taking forever - I'm in my last year of high school and so have LOADS of homework.

x

Lily Evans lay down on the bed that was far comfier than her own and looked out of the window, over grounds that were miles larger than what she had at home.

Outside, the sky was a deep blue and stars were beginning to emerge like dotted crystals on a velvety blanket. She felt happier and more relaxed than she had in what felt like a very long time but something was nagging at her. Something, and she wasn't sure what, kept telling her to be careful. Something, and she didn't have a clue why_, _was making her feel very nervous - as if she was about to do a bungee jump or actually agree to ride a broomstick.

There was a light tap at her door and she sat up "Yes?"

"It's me." a familiar voice replied and the door opened, revealing James in his boxers and a grey t-shirt "Hey."

Lily raised an eyebrow "Can I help you?"

James tilted his head to one side, messing up his hair absently with his left hand "I don't know, Evans..." He walked over to her, a smile playing on his lips "Maybe."

Lily laughed and reached to kiss him as he wrapped a strong arm around her waist and lifted her swiftly so that she was straddling him, one leg on each side of his waist.

Lily suddenly felt very warm. James pulled away, smiling at the blush creeping up her cheeks and resting his head on the feather pillows.

"What?" He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, a large smirk now visible on his face.

Lily hit his chest lightly, causing him to laugh "It's not funny!"

"What isn't?" He asked, catching her hand and grinning.

"It feels wrong!" She exclaimed, gesturing to the bedroom door.

"What does?"

"They're in the house!"

James laughed "Lil, we're as far away from them as it's possible to be."

She bit her lip "Well I've never had sex around anyone's parents - I'm not you!"

"Neither have I..."

"What?"

He smiled "Well, I've never really stuck around at a girl's house long enough to meet her parents, never mind actually shag her while they're in the-"

"What about _your_ parents?" She countered.

"What about them?"

"Well they must have been around at some point."

Now it was his turn to look confused "What are you talking about?"

"Well - didn't you have sex with any of the other girls you brought home?"

James' eyes widened and he laughed "Oh!"

"Exactly."

"No, no..." He shook his head, smiling "Lily - I've never brought _anyone_ here, apart from Sirius, Peter and Remus."

Lily frowned "No girls?"

"Apart from you, obviously."

She looked at him for a moment with a shrewd expression on her face check "Seriously? _Nobody_?"

"Nobody."

She continued to look at him for several minutes before deciding that this was the truth "Bloody hell."

He shrugged.

"Why me?"

The question didn't catch him off guard, he merely smiled, pushing himself up so that their faces were centimetres apart "I've been asking myself that for a while and...honestly, I don't know."

Lily nodded and then smiled, leaning forward to kiss him.

"Thank you." She breathed and, against her mouth, he smiled.

"No problem."

x

"_Fucking Hell, _Evans_.__" _James panted, as Lily untangled herself and dropped beside him.

The pair both looked up at the wooden panelling above the bed, breathing heavily and smiling.

"That was..." Lily started.

"Amazing." James finished, biting his lip and looking at her, a smile on his face "That was _amazing_."

"You're not too bad yourself." She muttered, smiling.

He laughed "Oh, I know."

Lily smiled and he wrapped his arm around her as she rested her cheek on his chest, hooking one smooth and silky leg between his "Arrogant bastard."

He smiled into her hair "Night, Lily."

She looked up and kissed him softly "Night night, James."

x

James Potter woke up the next morning, his hair a state and his clothes on the floor, but an incredibly large smile on his face.

Pulling on his boxers and glancing over to his girlfriend, who lay tangled in the sheets with a sleepy, peaceful look on her face, he ran a hand through his hair and felt like this was a dream; surely, Lily Evans couldn't be asleep, semi-naked, in his house. _Surely_, she couldn't be looking that content in _his_ house.

Grinning, and catching sight of his reflection, James laughed to himself and left the room, a bounce in his step.

x

The back wall of the kitchen, that had been replaced completely with glass, had been bewitched so it was possible to walk straight through. It kept out animals and rain but let in a gentle breeze and sunlight. James had always admired this creation - at the age of seven, he'd spent almost a whole week stood in the middle of the magic - one foot in the garden, the other on the stone flooring of the rustic kitchen.

Yes, James Potter had _always _loved that feature of the house but, as he walked down into the large room that morning, he was positive that he'd never seen it perform anything quite as enchanting as it was then. Lily was sat on a spinning breakfast stool, wearing blue jeans and a white t-shirt. Her hair was tied up into a messy bun, loose strands of scarlet hair framing her creamy face. The morning sunlight was pouring through the glass, shades of yellow and orange and pink bouncing off the walls and, most importantly, Lily herself. Somehow, it made her hair shimmer, her eyes dance and her figure glow. Noticing him, she put down the spotted mug from which she had been drinking and smiled.

"You're so beautiful." He said quietly, without really paying attention to what his mouth was doing. He realised, though, then. At that moment in time, like a brick wall, it hit him. She was _everything_. She was what he wanted, _this_ was what he wanted - what he'd _always _wanted.

A loud clattering pulled him back into reality.

"What did you just say?" His mother appeared from behind the open cupboard door, a highly confused look on her face "And why on _earth_ are you awake at this time?"

"Mum!" James jumped, his hand shooting to his hair instantly in some kind of desperate attempt to escape from the situation.

Dorcas Potter raised an eyebrow, turning to Lily and scratching her head "Bloody hell..."

Lily laughed lightly and jumped off the stool. She padded over to James, squeezed his hand and smiled "Thank you."

James shook his head, looking very red and pulled Lily's wrist "We're going out."

Mrs Potter laughed "Okay - Lily, please ensure that he doesn't get into _too_ much trouble and don't let him convince you that dangerous things are safe. I remember, one time, he and Sirius-"

James rolled his eyes and turned on the spot, pulling Lily into apparition.

However, Lily didn't get to hear the rest of the story as James had rolled his eyes, grabbed her hand and pulled her into apparition.

They landed lightly and Lily blinked against the rich sunlight.

"Bloody hell - where are we?"

James laughed, holding her waist and spinning her around "Look."

Lily opened her eyes and almost felt her heart drop from her stomach. She was, by a million miles, in the centre of the most beautiful surroundings she'd ever seen.

They were on the very edge of a large, jagged piece of rock, jutting out from a cliff face. The sun was rising from behind them, illuminating the valley below in which the Potter's home was nestled, surrounded by towering pine trees and exquisite grounds.

"Oh my god...This is amazing."

"It's okay." James smiled, running a hand through his hair and looking at her "I've seen far more impressive things, though."

Lily turned to look at him and then, as they observed each other carefully, on the brink of something amazing, James could have sworn he saw something shift in those emerald, almond shaped eyes that he'd come to know so well.

"James Potter..." The left hand corner of Lily's mouth twitched and she shook her head, somewhere between awe and exasperation.

James pulled her towards him, a smile forming on his lips "Yeah?"

She kissed him with a kind of urgency, the boy who'd caused her so much trouble over the years, the boy who could irritate her beyond belief, the boy who'd waited seven years.

James ran a hand down her back, causing goosebumps to erupt down her arms as she pulled back to look at him "I never thought I'd say this...I never, _ever_ thought I'd say this..."

James bit his bottom lip, holding back a smile "Say what?"

He knew what was coming and he'd waited years to hear it.

She knew what was coming and she supposed, really, it had been inevitable.

They both knew what was coming, someone just had to say the words.

It was Lily who finally did, though. With a look on her face and an edge in her voice, somewhere between disbelief and absolute certainty, she tilted her head to one side and told him one of the only things she was positive of in that moment.

"I love you."

x


	32. Sunshine

One hand was on the back of her neck, the other resting on her hip, gripping her t-shirt. His eyes were wide and bright and he held her gaze for several seconds before bringing both his hands back to his mouth and making some kind of sound from the back of his throat. As suddenly as they had left her body, his hands were in his hair and he had a look of incredulous ecstasy on his face as he stepped backwards and barked a disbelieving laugh.

Yes, in that second, James Potter looked as if he had won the lottery.

"You - You...Fucking hell, Evans..." He brought himself back towards her, pulling her by the sides of her t-shirt and grinning lop-sidedly "You really do have _no - _really,_ no_ idea how long I've wanted to hear you say that."

Lily laughed quietly and scratched the back of her neck "Yeah well, I can assure you I never thought I'd say it myself."

James brought his lips to hers, smiling against them, before pulling back almost instantly "Shit!"

She frowned, knowing what was coming "You don't have to say it back."

"Yes I do!"

She shook her head "Don't say it. Don't say it if you don't mean it - it's perfectly understandable-"

"Of course I mean it." The words were perfectly calm and said quietly, although they rang through the air like church bells t the end of a wedding.

Lily tilted her head to one side and he smiled softly.

"I love you so much - of course I do, I've spent seven years of my life chasing you." He pushed a strand of hair behind her ear and held her gaze, the flecks of gold and green dancing through his eyes in the sun making Lily's legs feel about as reliable as a chocolate kettle. "Love you? I'm about as in love as anyone can possibly be - you're absolutely everything to me and I swear to God, Merlin and whoever else may or may not be out there - I'd rather die than let anything happen to you."

Lily smiled, wrapping her arms around his neck and burying her face in his shoulder so that he couldn't see the tears that were threatening to emerge.

"Who knew you had it in you..." She muttered, smiling despite the wetness in her eyes.

He laughed gently "I'm sorry I didn't say it first."

Lily laughed too, then. Standing on her tiptoes, she kissed his cheek and pulled back, wiping her eyes "Don't be stupid."

James smiled and shook his head, a large smile pulling one side of his mouth up.

And right then, everything was perfect. Everything was holding them together and nothing was pulling them apart. In that moment, as the girl of his dreams laughed and smiled, looking out over the scene of his childhood having met his parents and told him she was in love with him, James Potter was about as happy as he'd ever been in his life.

In the back of his mind, he knew it probably wouldn't last. He knew that the darkness of a terrible war was millimetres away and he knew that, when it came, he and Lily would fight. With his friends, they'd fight for the right thing; They'd have to, because that's who they were.

However, thoughts like that were a million miles away as he reached for Lily's hand, feeling nothing but the lightness and joy that came with her.

She was Lily Evans.

She was his sunshine.

x

I know its short, but I wanted to give you something at least :)

I'll update Sunday probably, I'm having major Jily feels with it being October and all.


	33. Luck

In the eyes of Lily Evans, love was something dangerous and scary; concerning James Potter, it was all the more terrifying.

In his eyes, love was something equally as daunting but, at the same time, also a kind of blissful oblivion. Because, no matter what the situation, the fact was there, as clear as a blue sky: Lily Evans was in love with him. The girl he'd dreamed about for years and years, the girl who he never believed he'd actually get and one of the only females in the population who could actually outsmart him, had finally fallen for him.

And fallen was the correct term to use; for what Lily and James were experiencing wasn't exactly elegant. They hadn't tripped or stumbled - they'd flown, head first into cupid's deadly pit of emotions and uncertainty.

"You little bastard." Lily muttered two days later, pulling her hair up into a pony-tail and facing James "No."

James laughed and walked over, the casual smirk on his face as prominent as ever "Oh - come on!"

"I hate it. You know I hate it. I've always hated it."

"Yeah, but you've never done it with me before."

"I've seen you fall off one - I think that will do."

"Please?"

"Not a chance."

"This is not a good surprise, Potter."

He laughed, one arm resting on the kitchen work-surface "Course it is - every girl wants to be swept away."

"Not on one of those horrible things."

James squeezed the broomstick defensively "She'll hear you!"

Despite herself, Lily laughed "I'm terrified of heights."

"Yeah, you're also terrified of breaking school rules but you've done enough of that over the past seven years-"

"I have not!"

"Oh, get off your high horse - you're worse than I am."

Lily snorted "Is that a serious statement?"

"We've had sex in plenty of deserted classrooms, Lil. Could be expelled for that."

"That's not exactly-"

"And here come the excuses-"

"They are not excuses! I'm Head Girl!"

"And I'm Head Boy." He smirked "And we all know what I get up to."

Lily rolled her eyes "I'm not getting on the broom."

"Get on the broom."

She smiled "No."

"Fine." He shrugged, paused a second and then grabbed her, throwing her over one shoulder and running out into the warm morning air, taking off within four seconds of being outside.

"AARGH!" Lily screamed, feeling her stomach plunge "James!"

He merely laughed, pulling her forward slightly so that she was sat in front of him, his arms on each side of her gripping the broom.

Lily squeezed her eyes shut, far too nervous to pull out her wand and threaten him.

"If only you'd mastered non-verbal charms," James muttered into her ear "You'd be able to jinx me."

"I _have_." She hissed, her eyes still tightly closed "I just wouldn't know what to do up here with you, the one who knows how to work this thing, un-concious."

James chuckled "Did you just admit to not being able to do something?"

"I'm going to break your neck."

He smirked "Look, just open your eyes, will you?"

"_Open my eyes_?" Lily shook her head "Are you _insane_?"

"No, I'm pretty smart actually."

Cautiously, Lily partially opened her right eye and what she saw made her insides feel like they'd all switched places and turned inside out "Oh God!"

"Not the first time I've heard you shout that."

Lily shot a dirty look to her boyfriend but didn't dwell on it for too long, for what she saw truly was magnificent - she'd never, ever been that high up before. They were dipping in and out of clouds, soaring way above any of the hills. Absolutely terrifying of course, but magnificent all the same.

"Please don't kill me."

"If I didn't think it was safe you wouldn't be here, believe me."

"Your idea of safe is somewhat questionable, James. I dread to think what your children will turn out like."

He laughed "Hold on tight."

"Why?"

However, her question was answered as he dropped suddenly, plunging towards the ground. Lily tried to scream but had no air to do so and therefore began to cough and splutter as they landed on a rich green hillside.

"Fun?" James raised an eyebrow, a smirk on his lips and light dancing in his eyes.

As swift as anything he'd ever seen, Lily pulled out her wand and pointed it to the hem of his t-shirt, her own eyes burning "If you _ever_ scare me like that again, I will do some _serious_ damage with this wand. Is that clear?"

James smiled, wrapping an arm around her waist and pulling her towards him "You enjoyed it though - I can tell." Lily raised an eyebrow and James kissed her lightly "Admit it."

"It was...impressive. That does not mean that I enjoyed it."

"Never thought I'd get Lily Evans to admit that flying is impressive."

"Never thought I'd get on a broom with _you_."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You're a hazard."

"I am not." He laughed "Oh well, some things are just supposed to happen."

"Yeah, I think they are."

"Thought you didn't believe in fate?"

"I don't." Lily shook her head, a small smile playing on her lips "But I believe in luck."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah...and _this-"_she gestured to the small space between them "Is very good luck on your part."

James rolled his eyes as she winked "Whatever, Evans, I reckon you're the lucky one."

"Why's that?"

"You get to have sex with me, of course."

"Oh, how could I forget?"

He smirked "No, you're right I think...luck played out nicely here."

x

Right I can only apologise, if you all hate me then fair enough but I've had the most stressful five months ever, although that is no excuse for not updating. So, again, apologies, and please let me know what you think. Don't worry, the soppiness will disappear soon, but I think Lily and James deserve at least some happiness before Voldemort re-appears.


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